Another Chance at Love
by witchyvamp
Summary: AU An older Draco Malfoy is tired of being alone. When his attempt at getting back in time to his dead wife fails, an accident takes him back to his fourth year at Hogwarts. With his memory of older self intact, will Draco be able to change his destiny and reputation; eventually to find his true love?
1. The Accident

**Draco**

Draco Lucius Malfoy was having a bad day. He was a sensitive man under the stoic mask he always wore around the rest of the world. His life had taken so many unexpected turns and had changed him considerably in the process. Right now, being all alone in his big house, made his already bad mood worse. His only son and the only source of happiness in his lonely life, Scorpius was away at his school, _Hogwarts._ He, himself had been the student of the best wizarding school of the world, _Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry_. However, his father had wanted him to attend another school, _Durmstrang_. The memory of his father Lucius Malfoy, brought him another bout of anxiety. He had grown up as a child, being taught everything by his father who he had then considered to be the greatest wizard of all.

Later he had come to realize, it was one of his biggest mistake. He had learnt from his father, his views about how the wizarding society should be, and those were as false as they could have been. And after his father's failure in executing his master's command, he himself had been dragged into servitude of the most evil and dangerous wizard the world had ever seen, _Lord Voldemort_.

Trying hard to put these troubling thoughts at bay, he concentrated on the picture on his table. It showed a young woman, with a pale, heart-shaped face, who was smiling rather kindly looking over at Draco's face as if to ease his suffering. It had the immediate effect of relieving some of his pain.

Draco sat at the table now, looking closely at the frame of his wife Astoria's photograph. She was one of the few good things in his life, and now that she had died it had completely shattered him. She was the only person in whom he had confided in, and also the only person who understood him. She had attended a different school, _Beauxbatons_ and hence did not hold his past to form her opinion about him. Draco had finally understood what it meant to have a real friend. Everything was so good when they were married, but then a curse placed on her family line had resulted in her getting weak, which only increased as the time passed despite the best efforts of the healers at the _St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries_. She had insisted on having the baby when she got pregnant later, ignoring Draco's appeals that she was too frail. Scorpius was their bundle of joy and they were both so happy when he was born. He had now grown up to be a better boy than Draco ever was, and Draco was proud of him.

But right now, even he was away at school and not beside his father to help get him out of his pain. Draco felt guilty for wishing that his son was with him, Scorpius was probably happy at the school castle with his best friend, Albus. Again, it was an unusual friendship as Albus was the son of Harry Potter, who had been Draco's biggest rival at the school; they both had attended in the same year. Harry Potter was the most famous wizard of the present age; his biography was lying around somewhere in Draco's library, which he had curiously read. There was no mention of the hard time Draco used to give Harry at school, but now he was ashamed of those things and wished he could not have said and done things he did back then. Harry already had too much on his plate before he even met Draco, and then he was the one who Lord Voldemort was always after.

Draco once again focused on the photograph on his table, a longing to hear his wife's voice once more rose through him. It was cruel how less time he had gotten to spend with her. Just then, a reflection from the glass frame caught his eye. He turned towards the source of the gleam. It had come from behind him, where the glass cases containing magical instruments that were passed down to him from his father were kept. He never liked to touch those things, as they were a cruel reminder of his father and his legacy. Right now, a particular object caught his attention. The label of the glass case in which it was enclosed read, _'Time Turner'_.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Draco got up from his chair and started examining the box. There was a manual containing instructions beside the time-turner, which resembled a locket with an hourglass. He carefully read the introduction:

 _This time-turner is one of the most rare magical artifacts created by the goblins and wizards together, long before the mutual enmity arose between them. It is a true time-turner meaning, it can take the user back in time not only hours but years back at a time. Please read the further instructions of its usage carefully before using it._

There was another parchment containing the instructions on how to use the device. That was it, thought Draco. Finally, his father had been a help to him. He could use this time turner to go back in time to be with Astoria once again even if for a few hours of conversation. _Oh, what he wouldn't give to feel loved and accepted again!_

Draco took out the locket and put it on, like it had said in the instructions. He stole a glance at his dead wife's photograph and said, "I'm coming, Astoria."

Before he had the chance to further read the instructions, his _Intruder Charm_ go off. He wondered who had called at his house; he rarely had any visitors. He got his answer soon as the house announced loudly, " **Ministry wizards! Raid!"** He was grateful to his father again, as he was the one to put charms on the manor in case the Ministry of Magic wizards came to raid their house; that had been very frequent when Draco was a teen.

Draco came running into the hall, before he realized that his house was full of illegal magical dark objects. He did not want a full inquiry into him now that the _Minister for Magic_ was Hermione Granger, again his former classmate whom he wished hadn't made an enemy of. He hastily took out of his wand and began doing cloaking spells on everything that was supposed to be illegal in his sight. He then caught his reflection in the large mirror by the door and then remembered the time-turner around his neck. He was sure it was bound to be illegal, but he couldn't let it go yet; not before he could talk to Astoria again. He could now hear footsteps from the staircase. In a great hurry, he pointed towards the time-turner at his chest and muttered the _Disillusionment Charm_ under his breath.

If Draco had read the entire instructions, he would have known that no spells were to be used on the time-turner; and in case they _were_ used, the results would be disastrous. So, as the unaware Draco cast that spell, the time-turner's hourglass began spinning madly and he was swallowed by the darkness.

Draco couldn't recall how much time he spent revolving in the darkness; it was enough to make his brain dizzy from spinning and his senses numb.

The next thing he felt was the sudden jerk on his shoulders, and he was then lying in his four-poster bed inside the Slytherin dormitory with green and silver curtains. He heard Crabbe's voice calling, " **Draco! Draco!** **get up!** Or you'll miss the breakfast today." He jerked himself up on his bed and started, " **Bloody hell** , where am I?"

"Bad dream, was it?" asked a concerned looking Crabbe, it would have been funny to look at his alarmed face under different circumstances. But Crabbe had died in the Fiendfyre he had cast himself, hadn't he?

"Well, it can be expected, after the bad day you had yesterday. Turning into a ferret can do that to ya." Goyle was saying in a low voice as if afraid to piss him off.

"Yeah, that Moody really is Mad! No wonder old Dumblebore made him a teacher." continued Crabbe.

Draco's mind was racing…Ferret…Professor Moody…Time-turner…. He had now been transported back in time, to his own body in his fourth year at Hogwarts. With this startling new revelation, he got out of his bed, ready for more surprises as the day began.

His intention of using the time-turner was to find love and acceptance again. Will that wish be granted? Only time could tell.

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 ** _Author's Notes:_**

 **Please review and tell me how you found the story so far.**


	2. Encounter at the Library

**Draco**

After telling Crabbe and Goyle to go on to the great hall for breakfast; which both were happy to do as food was their favorite thing in the world, Draco decided to take a look in the mirror. He had to resist the urge to hug Crabbe once, thinking about how he had lost him in the seventh year; even if it had been Crabbe's own fault. He glanced around the dormitory to find that he was alone now; Blaise Zabini, the fourth boy who had shared the dormitory, had already gone for the breakfast.

A fourteen-year old boy with blonde hair and a thin outline stared at him from the gilded mirror. No trace of white was visible in his thick blonde hair, neither the slight bulge in his stomach and nor was the thick layer of beard that had almost covered his face, from the last time he had looked into a mirror. Still in awe, he instinctively checked his arm. No trace of the _Dark Mark_ showed anywhere. His old hawthorn wand was lying at his table. He picked it up curiously and a warm wave of magic passed through him as the wand bonded with him for the second time. This made him finally resolve that he had indeed been sent back in time. But to his dismay, there was no time-turner hanging in his neck which could return him back to his time.

A parchment was hanging on the side of the mirror frame. Draco looked into it to realize that was the timetable for their fourth year. Luckily that timetable was bewitched to show only that day's routine as he had no idea what day of the week it was. He took a sigh of relief seeing that the Slytherins only had _History of Magic_ after breakfast; other classes were after the lunch. He recalled that this subject was taught by a ghost _Professor Binns_ ; the ghost wasn't likely to miss him even if he didn't show up at the class. So, he decided not to skip History.

Now that he had free time till lunch, Draco sat down on his bed. He still had trouble believing that it was all real. He looked down at his legs; even his pyjamas looked foreign to him. He perfectly recalled the forty years of his life's memories as well as his magical knowledge; he took it as a good sign that he had not gone insane. Now that he thought about it, endless new opportunities were opened to him. All the things he had done wrong; all the words he wished he had never said; and all the lives that could still be saved. He remembered that their _Defence Against the Dark Arts_ professor Moody was being impersonated by a _Death Eater_ ; the loyal group of wizards who had served Voldemort. Yet, he couldn't think of a way anyone would believe him if he told them. Harry Potter and his two friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger thought him to be the same Draco that he was in his fourth year, and there was no chance they would believe anything even if he told them.

Yet, the more troubling problem was he wasn't sure what had happened with the time-turner and if he was still in danger of any other after-effects. When no solution came to his mind, he decided to have a look in the library. He hoped he would be able to find his answer amongst the innumerable books that were housed in the school library.

With this positive thought, he got up and dressed in his school robes. He felt a wave of pleasure in putting on his house uniform; he had missed this feeling of belonging somewhere. He had always been sure, just as the Sorting Hat of Hogwarts, that he belonged to the Slytherin house since the beginning. It had been his greatest pride, except for his name and his family name had lost its charm for him these days.

After he was ready, he took his wand and came out of his dormitory to his familiar Slytherin common-room.

The Slytherin common room was a long, low underground room with rough stone walls and ceiling from which round, greenish lamps were hanging on chains. A fire used to be crackling under an elaborately carved mantelpiece ahead of them, which was now empty and quiet. Just a few Slytherins were lounging in high-backed chairs, who probably had their first lessons off. They were giving him sympathetic looks, and then Draco remembered about the ferret incident.

That was perhaps one of the worst memories of his school days, he had felt so much anger, resentment and most of all embarrassment. He remembered how he had written to his father immediately and gotten a brief reply to just avoid Professor Moody's eyes. Yet, now so many years later, it seemed a trivial incident to him. He nodded curtly to his housemates before heading towards the library.

The passages and the stairs of the old castle seemed to welcome him as a long lost friend. Taking in the atmosphere, filled with the buzz of students talking and laughing; the smell of parchments and ink, he continued towards the library. The few people he had been on good terms with (mainly Slytherins) seemed to wave at him kindly while the Gryffindors had a hard time suppressing their laughter. When he saw a group of Gryffindors belonging to his own class; Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan and Neville Longbottom coming towards him from the Great Hall; he hurried towards his destination. Even now, he couldn't bear to be laughed at by Neville of all people.

In his rush to get inside the library, he bumped hard into someone who had been entering the library at the same moment. He was slightly alarmed that the person must have been the librarian _Madam Pince_ , as he couldn't think anyone else would come to the library so early in the morning. He instead was greeted with a pair of brown eyes looking at him from the bushy brown hair that seemed to cover her face. A pile of books were somehow balancing between them. When the girl recognized who she had bumped into, her eyes became wide, she dropped the books and lost her balance. Draco put his hands around her waist before she could fall. Her eyes grew wider at his action, and Draco couldn't help but smile. _Hermione Granger saved by Draco Malfoy!_ Even his fourteen-year old self wouldn't have believed it for a thousand galleons.

As Hermione was now dangling in his arms which held her waist, her hair had left her face exposed. Draco noticed that she was really pretty even without any makeup; she had clear skin, a perfect mouth and her brown eyes complimented her face very well; although at the time they were wide open in surprise. Hoping there still wasn't anyone in sight, Draco pushed her back onto her legs; but instead of finding her footing she stumbled again, clutching his shoulders for support.

Their faces were very close now. **Too close** , Draco thought. He could now smell her brown tresses which were now on his face as her face rested on his shoulder. She hesitated to leave his shoulders, but eventually let him go. As there was still no one else in view, he pointed his wand at her scattered books and put them in a neat pile beside her. He didn't wait another second and hurried over to find the time-related section of the library, leaving Hermione stunned at his casual display of non-verbal magic.

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 **Author's Notes:**

 **Guys, please review.**


	3. Encounter at the Library II

**Hermione**

Hermione Granger was famous for being extremely intelligent and hard-working, most of all for her self-proclaimed love for books. And much to her dislike, her two best friends were not as much interested in books as she was. One of them, Ronald Weasley had in fact once stated that he would choose to date Professor Trelawney, their _Divination_ teacher, over studying; and that was saying something. And Harry Potter, the third member of the trio, wasn't too keen on studies either and even when hedid study he did so grudgingly, only to pass his exams. Hermione was sure that both would've failed in _History of Magic_ subject, if she didn't lend them her notes since the first year. So she wasn't surprised that none of them were interested in accompanying her to the library this morning, even though both had their excuses ready when she had met them in the Great Hall.

"I am sorry, Hermione. I have Quidditch practice this morning. Even though the school tournament has been cancelled this year, we need to maintain form." Harry had said.

"A great morning today, isn't it? Perfect conditions for Quidditch, I'll come and watch, Harry. And 'Mione, we have classes all afternoon for studying, ain't we?" Ron had reasoned.

Resisting an urge to tell them that they were wasting a perfectly fine opportunity to go through the material to be taught beforehand, Hermione had told them goodbyes and made her way towards the school library, with a considerable pile of books she had to return today.

It wasn't easy to walk when you have a pile of books obscuring your vision, but Hermione somehow had reached the doors of the library without much ado. She could almost imagine Ron say, "You are a witch, aren't you Hermione!" But doing magic wasn't allowed into the corridors and there was no way she would be breaking the school rules just over carrying the books. She had passed a few fellow Gryffindor boys, strolling away towards the ground, taking full advantage of their morning off. One of them, Neville, had even offered to help her, but she had refused, not wanting to waste any of his time.

Just as she was about to be relieved of her burden, she had bumped straight into somebody. Thankfully, her stack of books were not flown to the ground, but were balanced between her and the other person's bodies. She looked up from the curtain of her bushy hair to find that the person who she had bumped into was none other than Draco Malfoy. The very person who taunted her for her blood status on a regular basis, not to mention that he saw himself as a rival to her best friend Harry.

Her eyes grew wide in surprise as she wondered what he was doing in the library, and that too so early in the morning. She had fully expected to see that loathed look he gave her whenever he had looked at her, but instead she found a surprised and curious pair of grey pair of eyes looking at her, straight in her eyes. That was enough to make her stumble and the books were now scattered all over the floor, but that wasn't her concern right now as she felt a strong hand grasp her waist, moments before she herself was about to fall.

Her hair now dangling from the sides, she now had the clear view of Malfoy's face. He seemed to be studying her face, as if looking at her for the first time. She noticed how he composed himself moments later and heaved her back to her feet, but she hadn't been ready yet; she had been too busy reading the mystery of his expressions. She blushed red as she grabbed his shoulders for support, and found herself almost hugging him. She suddenly remembered how much Malfoy hated her because of her blood-status and got to her feet before he could throw any abuses at her.

It seemed Malfoy wasn't in a mood to say anything today. But what really surprised Hermione the most was how he had used his wand casually to put all her books in a neat pile at her feet, before smoldering away inside the library. It was a simple spell, she knew it herself. But what really left her staring after him was that he hadn't uttered a single word. And they weren't supposed to start non-verbal spells until their sixth year. And he had helped her too. _Something was definitely fishy!_ Hermione couldn't help thinking as she picked up her books and entered the library.

She absent-mindedly left her bag at her usual table and went to Madam Pince, the librarian to return the books. She found that the library was mostly empty, except for some fifth and seventh years. She didn't see any sign of Malfoy as she returned her books and browsed the Ancient Runes section, which was in the further aisle of the library, for some books the teacher had referenced in the class. After she had found them, she returned to her table, hoping the books were as interesting as their covers gave the impression.

She was greeted with a very unusual sight. Draco Malfoy was now sitting at her table. As she put down her books on the table, he looked up in surprise. Hermione then realized that she hadn't noticed Malfoy's bag when she had put her own bag down, as then she was still puzzling over his new found wizarding skills.

Guessing it would be rude to switch places now, as Malfoy had helped her only moments ago, Hermione took her place at the end of the table. Once she had settled, she sneaked a glance towards the other end of the table. Malfoy had gone back to reading his book, _'Time-Travel and Its Uses'_ ; a couple of other books were lying on the table including, _'Rules of Meddling with a Time-Turner'_ and _'Time – Understanding the Mystery'_. She couldn't catch the title of another book whose cover was so ancient, its print was now fading away. Without even thinking about it, she had craned her neck towards those books, still all she could make out was the word _'Time-Turner'_ in its title. As she bent a little further, a pale hand had seized the book and moved it away from her line of sight. Draco had now spotted her, but he wasn't shooting daggers with his eyes as usual, but giving her a half-amused, half-exasparated look. And then, as if instinctively, he said "Granger." in a formal voice and nodded, before collecting his books and exiting the library.

There was something strange going on with Draco Malfoy. _Hermione was now sure of this. Since when had he started calling her 'Granger' and that too almost politely? He was using non-verbal spells and was suddenly researching about time-turners and time-travel. And there also was something strange in the way he had held her right before she was about to fall, the Malfoy she knew was not capable of that_. Always being a logical person throughout her life, Hermione was now determined to solve the mystery that Draco Malfoy had suddenly become.

Malfoy didn't return to the library all morning. Hermione had been there till the lunch bell had rung. After finishing with Arithmancy, she had also read about the history of the house-elves, in order to keep herself occupied, in case Malfoy turned up again. But he hadn't.

Sitting between both Harry and Ron at the Gryffindor table at lunch, Hermione told them about Draco's visit to the library this morning, conveniently skipping the part where they had collided at the door.

Ron had gulped down his food in surprise and exclaimed, "Malfoy? It couldn't have been. Or maybe after being turned into a ferret, he suddenly became interested into books."

"Or maybe he wanted to find out if he could use a time-turner to reverse that whole ferret incident by travelling back in time?" Harry suggested.

Hermione thought about it as Ron made a grunting noise; his mouth being too full of food to speak, as he agreed with Harry. It could be a possible explanation but it still didn't account for Malfoy to know non-verbal spells all of a sudden. She hadn't mentioned this to either of them as then she would also have to tell them about Malfoy saving her from falling down. She still hadn't recovered from the incident herself, and wasn't ready to face Ron's obvious accusations about Malfoy having ulterior motives. She finished the rest of the meal silently. She had glanced once at the Slytherin table, not surprised to find Draco absent. It was too early for the school to forget about the ferret incident; hence the obvious disappearance of Draco Malfoy. She wondered if it was this incident that had changed him; although she wasn't fully convinced yet.

At the end of the day, as Hermione lay in her bed trying to get some sleep, the incident from the morning flashed before her. There was something about the way he had held her that had seemed _almost romantic_. Don't think about Malfoy, she chided herself. A copy of 'Pride and Prejudice' lay forgotten beside her pillow; it had been a gift from her mother which had become her favourite bedtime book now. _Its bloody Malfoy for God's sake, you do know how much he hates you_. She thought furiously, before forcing herself to sleep.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Thanks for the reviews. Please keep letting me know about your views, they are really important to me. And do review if you want me to update sooner.**

 **;)**


	4. Hermione's Advice

**Draco**

Draco Malfoy was furious with himself. He had done a really stupid mistake that was sure to land him in big trouble, if he wasn't more careful in the future. He had accidently talked to Hermione Granger; even though it doesn't seem like a big mistake, it most certainly was. In their fourth year, Draco and Hermione were not on talking terms, if you didn't count insults and abuses. He hoped none the less that she didn't notice as he had habitually said, "Granger." to her back in the library. Yet, he knew it was desperate to hope for such a thing; she was afterall, the brightest witch of their age. Even though some twenty years from now, they shared a tolerant working relationship; Hermione being the Minister for Magic and Draco being one of the prominent donators for the Ministry; she would never have dreamt of him calling him by her last name in her fourth year.

Now that he thought about it, it wasn't entirely his fault. _She was the one being nosy about what books he was referring to in the library, and that too after he had saved her from a disgraceful fall few moments ago_. Indeed, she was as snooping as he had remembered her to be.

But, she was also more beautiful than he had ever remembered. Not that he had ever paid her any attention at school. _And whose fault it was? ~_ said a small voice inside his head. **Why was he suddenly paying so much attention to Granger, when he had a bigger and more severe problem at hand!** He forced himself to instead focus on the books he had gotten from the library.

A day and four books later, Draco was nowhere close to finding anything concrete about his time-turner accident and what its implications would be. He even had classes to attend in between his research. He had been lucky enough to suffer through just Herbology and Astrology yet. Though he probably knew everything that was being taught, he didn't want to raise further suspicions at himself; now that Hermione Granger was glaring at him doubtfully every time she saw him. Apparently, not many wizards had possessed such powerful time-turner devices and those few who had were not so foolish to use them without going through the instructions first.

Draco wasn't the type of person who gave up easily, so he decided to give the library one more chance, after the lunch the other day. He returned the books he had borrowed and asked Madam Pince, the librarian; for books related to time-travels giving her the excuse that he was genuinely fascinated by the topic. She had agreed quite easily, given how charming Draco could be when he wanted something. She gave him a couple more books, a few from the restricted section when he had promised to read them in the library itself and Draco proceeded to a table at the far end, determined this time not to get any distractions.

A few quick glances at the contents page told him that these books were of no better use than the previous ones he had read earlier. These books only talked about the theory involved and also numerous warnings but none of them talked about any accidents resembling his situation.

While he was immersed in the books, somebody had thrown their bag on the opposite chair. He looked up to find none other than Hermione Granger's intelligent brown eyes, looking directly at him.

"Is this seat taken?" she asked. She had her hair tied in a messy bun today, some of the fringes that had escaped, framed her heart shaped face.

When he didn't answer, which she hopefully thought was from the shock of her talking to him though Draco was just lost examining her face, she continued, "Since its empty, I'll just assume I'm not stealing someone else's chair." And with that, she sat herself down in the opposite chair.

It took a few more seconds for Draco to recover, and then thought grudgingly that he couldn't walk out of the library this time having already promised Madam Pince. He tried to remember what his fourteen-year old self would say. He realized that he didn't really want to take reference from his past self in Hermione's case, because frankly he had been horrible to her. Instead he wondered what had caused her to overcome her hatred for him to come and talk to him as if they were friends. He told her straight out, "Look, if you have come to spy on me Granger, be assured that I am not plotting anything against you and your friends."

* * *

 **Hermione**

Hermione had carefully planned what she was going to do to find out Malfoy's secret. In fact, it was so simple that he would probably fall for it immediately. First step, was to find him alone. This was easy as she had seen him in the library alone the other day; not that his bodyguards Crabbe and Goyle could breathe in the library's atmosphere. She just had to stake the library and grab the opportunity when he returned. The second step would be to catch him off guard, probably when he is immersed into a book. The third step then would be to ask him about what he is doing; he would be so shocked to see her talking that he might give her an honest answer. A particularly funny incident had come to her mind, when last year she had punched him hard on his proud pureblood nose; he had looked terrified of her. Hopefully, the memory was still with him, it had been only a few months after all.

Everything had gone well till step two. But now she seemed to have messed up the third step. But she had not counted on her mind suddenly wandering on Malfoy's features. He was just sitting on a chair, engrossed in some books. Now that she had overcome her earlier hesitation over being close to him, she suddenly began to find him more attractive. He had perfectly blonde hair, and his grey eyes fitted his pale face accurately; and the way his eyes were darting across the pages, he seemed more intense, _almost sexy_. And here, she had made her mistake; instead of asking directly about what Malfoy was doing, she had bothered asking about the chair. This had given him time to recover from his initial shock and he definitely didn't look scared of her, as if the punch on the nose wasn't enough for him. Now, he sounded confident and poised, as he had said, "Look, if you have come to spy on me Granger, be assured that I am not plotting anything against you and your friends." She had also not counted on him growing so mature so soon.

It was now her turn to falter, "Um, I see that you're researching about the time-turners. I have actually used one."

* * *

 **Draco**

Draco thought for a moment. _Was Granger really the answer for his problems?_ He recalled reading Rita Skeeter's book series on the golden trio's school adventures and there was a mention of them using a time-turner to save Sirius Black's life. He also knew that it was still a secret in the present day.

"Really? A muggle-born like you? How did you get hold of that, let any prisoner escape?" he asked in a rush.

The look on Granger's face was a real treat for Draco. _This is what you get for spying on me, Granger, he thought_. He could see her thinking hard about a reasonable answer. _Damn, this girl can't even lie properly_.

"Professor McGonagall had sanctioned it to me last year, under the warning that no other student knows." She said guiltily as if she was putting her entire career on the line. Then, like it had just dawned on her, she blurted out, "Wait a second, since when do you call me a muggle-born?"

If he could, Draco would also have given her the title of 'most observant witch of her age' to go with her 'brightest witch of her age' title. But now, he needed to rectify his mistake, rather improvise upon it. "Well, what _would_ you like me to call you, Granger?" he smirked.

"Granger is fine." She retorted fiercely.

"Seems like I've touched a nerve there. If you would be gracious enough to forgive me for all the foul things that I've said to you in the past, we can at least talk with some civility here. You have my sincere apology. I am honestly trying to improve myself here." He said earnestly.

This definitely took Granger by surprise, Draco thought looking at her expressions. She seemed to be thinking hard about something. After a long minute, she finally said, "Are you on Polyjuice Potion? Who exactly are you?"

This made Draco laugh, even though it was being spoken with full seriousness. He couldn't remember when he had laughed last. He had to stop soon, after a quick glare from both Madam Pince and Hermione Granger.

"Well, I should introduce myself properly then. I am Draco Malfoy, a very handsome yet ill-bred Slytherin and a mediocre student, well at least by your standards." He couldn't help giving her his lopsided smile as he extended his arm, hoping for a handshake.

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Malfoy. Hermione Granger." She said in the same tone as she shook his hand and he couldn't help but notice how their hands had fit perfectly together.

"Well, now that we are done with the formalities, you were telling me something about the time-turners." Draco enquired.

"I used it last year to get through all my classes, and the time-turner had been authorized by the Ministry." She said raising her eyebrow at the last line.

Draco smiled and nodded as he took the hint she was giving him. He couldn't land her in any trouble since everything had been authorized by the Ministry. She had conveniently not mentioned saving an escaped prisoner using that exact time-turner, who was a most wanted criminal as they spoke. Funny enough, he was also Draco's uncle, a cousin of his mother's. She was indeed very loyal to her friends. He wondered whether he could acquire such friendship with anyone, now that he had a chance.

When Draco didn't speak, she continued, "That time-turner had the ability to go back in time for a few hours, to get me through class and all the revision."

"So, that was not an true time-turner then?" Draco questioned.

"What do you mean, a _true_ time-turner?" Granger asked, intrigued. Draco didn't blame her.

"The one which can take you anywhere in time. Past or future. Even alternate universes." He explained in a calm voice.

"Wow, but as amazing as it sounds, does it even exist?" She asked, after thinking on it for a moment.

"I have a reason to believe it does. But you won't have any more ideas about a true time-turner then?" He asked, trying hard to keep his voice free from any emotion.

Granger grudgingly shook her head. Draco could tell that she felt really bad about not knowing about something.

"But you could always ask somebody who does know. Professor McGonagall for example. I bet she knows all about them." She told him cheerfully, glad to be of help.

Of course. Why hadn't he thought about going to a teacher before? Draco mentally scolded himself. Granger seemed to have arrived at the conclusion much quicker.

"Now, _that_ Granger is why you are the brightest witch of our age. You can take a look at these books about the time-turners if you like, I've seen you looking covertly at them. But do return them to Madam Pince before leaving. And of course, thank you so very much for your help. Gotta run now." And with that Draco hurried out of the library.

* * *

 **Hermione**

As she sat in the library looking at the back of Malfoy hurrying out of the library, Hermione pinched herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming it up. Had he just called her 'the brightest witch of our age' and actually thanked her for her advice? She looked down at the books Malfoy had left behind for her. Judging by their covers, some of them seemed to be from the restricted sections. It had been very thoughtful for him, but since when did Draco Malfoy do thoughtful? He had told her that he was trying to change for good. But whether it turned out to be a fluke or a permanent thing, she had yet to find out. Anyhow she had to admit, Draco Malfoy was not just a ill-bred Slytherin like he had called himself, he also had a charming and mature side to his personality. To stop brooding over him further than necessary, she buried herself in those books to read about the true time-turners that he was so passionate about.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

So guys, who do y'all think Draco is running off to? Review.

;)


	5. The Solution to His Problem

**Draco**

Hermione Granger, the person whom he had _least_ expected, had given him the _best_ idea. Now, all his problems would be solved. How had he forgotten that till his fourth year, no major deaths had happened yet. That also meant his favorite professor of all time, who had acquired much of his respect after he had heard his entire story, who was regarded as one of the bravest Slytherin to have ever lived; _Severus Snape was still teaching Potions at Hogwarts_!

He almost ran down towards the dungeons; the directions for Professor Snape's office coming automatically to him. He rushed inside the office to find that Severus Snape was still there, although in a hurry to go for his afternoon class. He seemed exactly like he had seen him the last time, perfectly healthy.

Draco looked around. The shadowy room was lined with shelves bearing hundreds of glass jars in which slimy bits of animals and plants were suspended in variously coloured potions. In one corner stood the cupboard full of ingredients usually used in brewing potions of all sorts.

"Professor, I need to have a word." Draco panted.

"Uh Draco, I really think that whatever that is, will have to wait a few more hours, as I have a few first-years' potions class to teach." Snape said, like it was the most horrible thing to do in the whole world.

"Please professor, It's a matter of life and death. And I can think of _no one else_ who can solve my problem any better than you." Draco tried again.

"Draco, you do know how much I hate being late to a class. And, _flattery_ isn't going to take you anywhere." But, a small smile betrayed the professor's words.

"Sir, _please_. This information can help a lot regarding… the Dark Lord." Draco couldn't think of anything else to catch his attention.

The reaction of Severus Snape did not disappoint Draco. He had dropped his attendance records, with a thud, on his table. After a momentary change of expressions, which Draco knew he wouldn't have caught in his fourteenth year; Snape sat down in his chair, pointing him to sit, and said, " **Explain**."

Draco sat down in one of the chairs on the other side of the desk, thinking how to start his start his story.

"It may seem a bit far-fetched to you at first but professor, but you need to believe me. I am telling the truth when I say that I am actually from the future. I had an accident with a time-turner and somehow a forty-year old man is now stuck as his fourteen-year old self." After saying these lines, Draco looked carefully at his favourite teacher.

"Malfoy, what _kind_ of a fool do you take me for? I know for a fact that time-turners can't make you _switch_ bodies. You really should do your research well before you lie to me. Is this because you have your Defense Against the Dark Arts class in the next hour? Trying to get out of class by making utterly ridiculous stories?" A hard line was forming on Snape's forehead which gave Draco the forebodings of his upcoming fit of rage.

" _Sir please_ , it was an accident. And honestly, I don't really remember too much about that day. You need to believe me. Ask me any question that only my future-self would know, not the present me?" Draco was now desperate to make him believe his story.

The challenge of defying Draco's story seemed to get Snape's interest. He thought for a minute, twirling his wand in his hands unconsciously. Then, he asked confidently, "What is the form of my Patronus?"

Draco took a moment to think. Harry had in future, had told the story of Snape's role in saving his life including him leading to the Gryffindor's sword, on numerous occasions. In the same confident tone as his teacher, he answered, "A doe."

This time, Severus Snape couldn't hide his great astonishment. For a full minute, his mouth hung open, his wand slipped from his hands and landed on the desk. Seeing him returning back to his normal self, Draco added, "And I also know the reason behind that form."

"Then I must ask you to never reveal that to anyone, _especially_ to Potter." Snape's voice barely held the threat.

"It seems Mr. Malfoy that we have a very…let's just say…unconventional situation at our hands. If you'll please come with me." The professor motioned for him to follow, as he himself got up from his chair and took off from his office.

He led him to the Headmaster's Tower, stopping only before a large and extremely ugly stone gargoyle. Draco should've expected that Professor Dumbledore would eventually be informed. He also felt excited as he had never been inside the Headmaster's office before.

"Acid Pop!" Snape said. The gargoyle sprang suddenly to life and hopped aside as the wall behind him split in two. Behind the wall was a spiral staircase that was moving smoothly upward, like an escalator. As he and Professor Snape stepped onto it, Draco heard the wall thud closed behind them. They rose upward in circles, higher and higher, until at last, Draco saw a gleaming oak door ahead, with a brass knocker in the shape of a griffin.

They stepped off the stone staircase at the top, and Professor Snape rapped on the door. It opened silently. He told Draco to wait outside and went inside the door, closing it behind him.

After a few minutes, which seemed to him like ages, Professor Snape's voice called him inside.

He opened the door and hurried inside. It was a large and beautiful circular room, full of funny little noises. A number of curious silver instruments stood on spindle legged tables, whirring and emitting little puffs of smoke. The walls were covered with portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses, all of whom were snoozing gently in their frames. There was also an enormous, claw-footed desk, and, sitting on a shelf behind it, a shabby, tattered wizard's hat — the Sorting Hat. Draco distinctly remembered how it had merely touched his head and sorted him into Slytherin house.

"Mr. Malfoy, I've been hearing about your extraordinary adventure from Professor Snape. I see that you have managed to convince him of your story, so I have no reason except to believe you too." Professor Dumbledore spoke calmly, from his high chair and behind him was perched his pet, a Phoenix. Draco had never seen a real phoenix before, and so he was so amazed that he kept staring at it. He vaguely noticed that Professor Snape was lurking behind him, trying to melt in shadows, letting the Headmaster do the interrogation as he watched silently.

"That is my pet, _Fawkes_. As you already know, he is a phoenix." Dumbledore answered, noticing Draco staring at him. The phoenix seemed to enjoy hearing his name and nipped Dumbledore's arms.

"Um, yes sir of course. Do you think there is a solution?" Draco asked, tearing his gaze from the phoenix to the man whose death he had caused once.

"A _solution_ , you say Mr. Malfoy. It's a tricky word. But first, could you describe the accident you had with your time-turner to me first, by the best of your knowledge, but without revealing any important reference to the future? A _true_ time-turner it was, I presume?" Dumbledore offered kindly. He seemed to be looking intently at him through his half-moon glasses, his blue eyes never leaving him. Draco remembered about him being a _Legilimens_ ; he suddenly felt relieved that he had practiced _Occlumency_ all his life, having never forgotten Aunt Bellatrix's Lessons.

"Yes sir, a true time-turner. Well, I had been feeling a bit lonely and found the time-turner among other magical objects my father had left me." Draco seemed eager to first get his intentions cleared. When Professor Dumbledore looked at him encouragingly, he continued, "I put the time-turner on my neck, and started reading through its instructions. I had only just started when I was ambushed by some Ministry wizards, and in the confusion some spell seemed to have hit the time-turner. When I opened my eyes, I was in my dormitory here. And the time-turner was gone."

Dumbledore peered through his glasses, and asked, "Do you think that the time-turner shattered as a result of these spells?"

"It could have." Draco thought out loud.

"I see." There was a pause. Then, professor Dumbledore spoke again. "Mr. Malfoy, would you say that some of your memories have faded a little?"

Draco thought about this. All his knowledge seemed to be intact. There was the memory of being married _but he could no longer remember the name or face of his wife_. He was utterly confused; just yesterday when he had woken up on his bed, he had remembered everything perfectly. He tried to remember her desperately but to no avail.

Looking at the now bewildered Draco, Dumbledore said, "I see that your memories have started modifying. There is no need to worry, Mr. Malfoy. It is **Time** 's way of adjusting herself according to the present."

Draco seemed happy for the first time. "Can you fix it then, professor?"

" _Fix it_ , you say, Mr. Malfoy? No wizard, including myself can fix time. And that is saying something, since I have contributed a fair amount of my lifetime pursuing the subject of Transfiguration. A true time-turner is a rare object, making the accidents related to it even _more_ rare. But, I can assure of this, if you don't reveal your secret to anyone other than myself and Professor Snape of course, you'll do just fine." Dumbledore answered.

"I have not told anyone else." Draco said, almost relieved. "But, does that mean you know what exactly happened during the accident?"

"No, not exactly. I have a few ideas, of course." Dumbledore said nonchalantly. "But you must remember Mr. Malfoy, any change you make in the present will affect the future, not just yours but for the rest of the world. You have a great responsibility on your shoulders now. A great many lives can be saved and the world can be protected from the horrors you have already witnessed. Remember this: _Everything in your future life is a reflection of a choice you once made. If you want different results, make different choices_."

Draco nodded as his mind soaked in the words of his Headmaster.

Albus Dumbledore, then looked at his watch. As far as Draco could see, the watch had twelve hands and instead of numbers, planets were revolving around in it. He exclaimed, "Oh look at the time! I see that Professor Snape here is already late for his class, while you Mr. Malfoy have a class in ten minutes from now. I wouldn't want to disrupt your classes. And Mr. Malfoy, feel free to call upon me or Professor Snape if you need any guidance."

Draco got up and was about to leave when he felt a long hand on his shoulder. The headmaster had some final advice, "A little parting advice my dear boy, " _When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us._ " With that, Dumbledore gave him a wink.

As the door of the Headmaster's office closed, Draco could hear Dumbledore tell Professor Snape in a low voice, " _Take care of him, Severus."_

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

While writing about Professor Snape, I couldn't help but remember the great actor, _Alan Rickman_. He'll " **always** " be my Severus Snape. May he rest in peace.


	6. The Solution to His Problem II

**Draco**

With his mind still swirling with Dumbledore's words, Draco took his seat in the Defense Against the Dark Arts class. He didn't have time to bring his book from the dormitory, but Crabbe had already taken care of it. Draco now recalled that it was usually Crabbe or Goyle who used to carry his bag in the school.

The class fell silent as Professor Moody walked into the classroom with his distinctive clunking footsteps. Draco could just see his clawed, wooden foot protruding from underneath his robes. Draco took a mental note that he wasn't the real auror who was supposed to take this class, but a Death Eater impersonating him. He immediately pushed away every other thoughts from his mind and concentrated on him.

Moody took out a register, shook his long mane of grizzled gray hair out of his twisted and scarred face, and began to call out names, his normal eye moving steadily down the list while his magical eye swiveled around, fixing upon each student as he or she answered. When Draco's turn came, he received a full minute glare from both his magical and normal eyes.

Draco distinctly remembered this class now. The professor had started the class by talking about curses and had soon gone on to the topic of unforgivable curses. He had performed each of them on a few samples of spiders he had brought, and the rest of the lesson had been spent taking notes on these curses. Draco sighed internally as he braced himself for another hour of class which was only too familiar to him.

The class seemed to go smoothly for Draco till the professor had said, "The Cruciatus Curse. Needs to be a bit bigger for you to get the idea," and he pointed his wand at the spider. "Engorgio!"

The spider swelled. It was now larger than a tarantula.

Moody raised his wand again, pointed it at the spider, and muttered, "Crucio!"

At once, the spider's legs bent in upon its body; it rolled over and began to twitch horribly, rocking from side to side. Moody did not remove his wand, and the spider started to shudder and jerk more violently—

Another scene flashed through Draco's mind. His aunt Bellatrix Lestrange, had used the same curse on Hermione Granger once, right inside his house. He was just a helpless bystander when his aunt had tortured her for information about her Gringotts bank vault robbery. The girl had shown great courage that night, enduring all the pain and still not betraying her friends and her cause. She had indeed won his respect that day. He shuddered to think that she might still have to suffer through that torture again, three years from now. He barely heard Moody continue, "Pain. You don't need thumbscrews or knives to torture someone if you can perform the Cruciatus Curse… That one was very popular once too."

The class finally ended and Draco did not have any more classes to attend. So, he made his way towards the library which was the only place he could be left alone, after saying hasty goodbyes to Crabbe and Goyle. It was a good thing they never questioned him about anything, and Draco suspected it was for the fear of making him mad.

On his way, he saw a mass of brown hair walking towards the library ahead of him, which he immediately recognized to be Hermione Granger. She seemed to be taking an interest in him these days, but today he wanted to be left alone. A wave of guilt washed over him as he was again reminded of her being cursed. So, he retraced his steps and began walking towards the seventh floor instead, to the only place he knew he would get some privacy – The Room of Requirement.

The room had transformed itself into a lounge to suit his needs. Draco plunged into the sofa, closing his eyes and taking few deep breaths. Everything seemed to be overwhelming to him.

After a few minutes, he opened his eyes to find handsome journals on the table in front of him. Thinking that writing about everything will be a help to him, he started writing down everything that he remembered – everything related to the war against the Dark Lord.

When he had finished the timeline, he realized that he was now at a crucial point which could decide the fate of the upcoming years. This was the year that the Dark Lord had risen to power again, taking a human form again and gathering all his lost followers. If Draco could somehow thwart his rise to power, then it would be a great help in preventing the loss of many lives.

Dumbledore's words rang into his ears: _**Everything in your future life is a reflection of a choice you once made. If you want different results, make different choices**_.

He started thinking. If he made any choice that he hadn't the last time he was fourteen, that would change the future. If this was the case, then even a slight change on his part could affect the outcome of the war. _What if, his actions made only short-term progresses? If he unwittingly changed the outcome of war, then the wizarding history would owe their downfall to him._ _Why did Dumbledore want him to make these choices?_ Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger had done their part very well and had won the war in the end, even though it had come with some notable sacrifices. If he meddled now, the future would rewrite itself; whether in his favour, he was uncertain.

Draco was still struggling with what changes he was meant to do, when he went to sleep that night.

A week had passed and Draco was no more closer to his solution than he was the first day. The classes were easy enough for him as he had already learned it all. He had spent most of his time at the library these days and had encountered Hermione Granger more times than he wished. They both had usually kept to themselves, but he had caught her throwing curious glances at him a few times.

That evening, as Draco entered the Slytherin common room, Blaise Zabini was waiting for him with a parchment.

"Hey, Draco. Professor Snape gave this to me. Said it was for you." Blaise gave him the parchment and went towards their dormitory.

Draco had expected to find Professor Snape's crawling handwriting but was surprised to find an elegant script:

 _Dear Mr. Malfoy, I wanted to have a word with you regarding your situation. Kindly drop by my office at 8 pm._

 _Yours sincerely,_

 _Albus Dumbledore_

Draco looked at the letter over and over again and realized that it was indeed real. He felt restless while waiting for 8 pm, and dashed off to the Headmaster's office ten minutes before 8.

"Acid Pop," said Draco, and the gargoyle leapt aside; the wall behind it slid apart, and a moving spiral stone staircase was revealed, onto which Draco stepped, so that he was carried in smooth circles up to the door with the brass knocker that led to Dumbledore's Office.

Draco knocked.

"Come in," said Dumbledore's voice.

"Good evening, sir," said Draco, walking into the headmaster's office.

"You may be wondering why I called you here tonight."

"It must be about my… accident, sir. That I still remember things about the future." Draco guessed.

"Ah, yes. Knowledge is a very powerful weapon, Draco. But that is not the only reason I wanted to talk to you tonight. I've been hearing that you have secluded yourselves these days. Being alone does not do any good, my boy. Especially when you have the castle flowing with so many students." said Dumbledore.

"Sir, but I am accustomed to being alone since a long time." Draco said.

"And as I recall, that was exactly the reason you put on the time-turner, isn't it?" Dumbledore peered over his half-moon glasses to look at him.

Draco had no reply this time. He had been so involved in finding the right choice to make, that he had completely ignored this aspect of his coming back in time.

"I hope you will give yourself a new chance to make new friendships. You also have a very heavy burden upon your shoulders; and it shouldn't necessarily be borne alone. You will find that even the most difficult of tasks can become quite easy if you have your friends beside you." Dumbledore said in a solemn voice, his gaze not leaving Draco's face.

"I will try, sir." answered Draco.

"And I think you have some questions." Dumbledore said wisely.

"Sir, why can't I just tell you everything that I remember that has happened since this time?" Draco asked.

"No, Draco. You can not tell anyone. Not even me. Not even Professor Snape. I have told you before, knowledge is very powerful and can also prove to be very dangerous."

"Also, remember this. You cannot change everything. Change as few things as possible from the current time, but these may only be the ones that have direct and effective impact on the things to come. I am really sorry, but you have to be the one to do it, which I am sure you will. You have my trust." said Dumbledore.

"Thank you, sir." Draco said feeling humbled.

"I waited a week to give you some time to get over the ordeal that you have gone through, before giving you further instructions. Also, I will be very busy this year with the Triwizard Tournament coming up. Even then, if you need any assistance from me, you may call upon me anytime."

"Okay, sir."

"Well, if you don't have any more questions, you may go back to your comfortable bed now. Good night, Draco." said Dumbledore.

"Good night, sir." Draco said, before closing the door with the brass knocker behind him.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

Thank you so much for your very kind reviews, guys! Keep writing them, they lift my spirits every time.

Chester99, thank you for the writing-everything-down tip. As for your question, this happens at the start of the term, so yeah, before the Yule Ball.

Real Inka, thank you for your kind words. Yes, there will be POVs of different characters, when the need arises. And no, Draco will not forget everything; just the things that will change in his future, so he'll retain his maturity for now.


	7. The Goblet of Fire

**Draco**

After being assured by Albus Dumbledore that he needn't meddle too much with time, Draco decided to center his energies on enjoying his teenage years once again. As the time passed, he was becoming more and more comfortable with his current age and his focus returned shortly. He soon became good friends with Blaise Zabini, a fellow Slytherin and even a few Ravenclaws like Terry Boot and Lisa Turpin. At first, they were a bit apprehensive about Draco's intentions but he had won them over with his charms and also an improved interest in studies. Crabbe and Goyle continued to follow him around whenever he was not in the library or with his new friends, but that happened less often than before.

Since Draco already knew all about his current subjects, he requested Professor Snape to let him take some extra classes. To his surprise, Professor Snape was happy to assign him some new subjects that included Arithmancy, Ancient Runes and even Muggle Studies. Draco had preferred Divination over Muggle Studies, but Professor Snape had convinced him that Muggle Studies would prove a more useful subject to him than Divination. Not wanting to refuse his advice, Draco had half-heartedly agreed to this.

Taking extra subjects meant that Draco now had a full time-table, but he wasn't complaining. He even had to cover an extra year of work in the three new subjects he had taken, since new subjects had already started last year. He even had to take remedial classes for those subjects, but he was determined to learn everything the school had to offer.

Each of the three professors had assigned a student to fill Draco in with the study material already taught in the class. Blaise had offered Professor Babbling to teach him Ancient Runes, while Terry Boot was selected by Professor Burbage to teach him about Muggle Studies; and lastly, Professor Vector the Arithmancy teacher had chosen _none other than Hermione Granger!_

At first, Draco had wanted to protest; but Blaise had told him that the subject was very difficult and he would be better off with Hermione teaching him than any of the other students in the class; as she was the best at it. Finally, Draco's Slytherin side won as he reflected that learning Arithmancy was more important than worrying about having to spend time with Granger.

It did not come as a surprise for Draco when Hermione had marched to him right after the Arithmancy class, the very first day she was notified that she would be teaching him.

"Malfoy!" she called in a high voice.

"Granger!" Draco answered airily.

"Professor Vector has informed me that I have to teach you last year's syllabus. Meet me in the library at 6." she notified him bossily.

When he just nodded breezily, she continued in the same bossy voice, "And, _do not be late_." With that, she was gone.

"Yeah, _do not_ be late. I shudder to think what will happen if you are." Blaise said in his ear, mockingly.

"Shut up, Zabini!" Draco hissed. "You were the one who convinced me that this was a good idea."

"Well, she is the best in our class. And you are not getting any better teacher than her, except Professor Vector, of course. Just be prepared to study sincerely and you will be fine. _How bad can it be?"_ Blaise assured him.

Draco thought about it. He would know soon how much trouble he had landed himself in. At least she was talking to him. After the previous few encounters in the library, Draco had continued to ignore her because he had thought it best for both of them; and she had also followed suit. He realized that he could not continue to ignore her now that she was to become his Arithmancy tutor.

Draco reached the library in time to find Hermione already waiting for him.

"Look Granger, don't start about me being late now. _You_ are the one who's early." he said while keeping his bag on the opposite side of the table.

" _I_ haven't said anything about you being late, _have I_? Now, if you are comfortable with all your accusations, I want to start with the first chapter right about _now_." Hermione answered him curtly.

Draco kept his mouth wisely shut and listened to her explain about the ancient Greek isopsephy. Draco had learnt many languages in his later years, Greek and Latin among them; and he was pleased that they would be very useful for him in this subject.

Hermione paused between her topics every now and then, and quizzed Draco to check if he was paying attention. Draco managed to answer every question and was glad when Hermione announced that they were making good progress.

When the clock struck eight, Hermione finally ended the lesson, saying "Good work today, Malfoy! More than what I had expected. If we keep up this progress, soon you'll be able to catch up with the present class. We can meet alternate days at the same time."

"Alternate days? But, I have more classes to catch up to." Draco protested. Of course Hermione didn't know about his two other classes; but he did not elaborate. He did not want her to know that just yet.

"Well, but they won't be as difficult as Arithmancy, Malfoy! Besides, I really want to get this over with; and lucky for us, I get to decide the schedule. So, be here on time the day after tomorrow." Hermione had flung her bag over her shoulders and hurried to the Great Hall.

"With all this work, I'm going to need the time-turner again." Draco sighed.

October went quickly for Draco, who had to juggle his extra classes with his normal classes. Between them, he had almost no time to spare. And that meant he had no time to think about the horrible things from his future that were going to happen soon enough at Hogwarts; this was the reason he had immersed himself into his studies. His hard work was showing in all his subjects, and soon he had completed more than half of last year's work. Hermione was still showing him no mercy, teaching him every alternate day, and so Arithmancy was the subject he was getting very good at. Ancient Runes was easy enough once he had mastered the basics, but his main concern was Muggle Studies. Even though, Terry Boot tried his best, Draco could not get the hang of how the _electricity_ worked or _what was the need of a helicopter if you already have a broomstick!_

It was soon time for the other schools to arrive for the Triwizard Tournament. Both Blaise and Boot were too excited to continue their lessons, but Hermione had refused to budge.

" _So what_ , we will continue our lessons, as before. If you don't study at this pace, how are you going to catch up to the regular class? Now, no more arguments." With that, she had resumed her lesson.

Draco was pleased when it was announced that they were required to assemble in front of the castle that evening, to welcome the visiting students. Hermione being strict about following the rules, would not be breaking them just for him. Even though, he had already seen the two envoys arrive, he was filled with the same enthusiasm again as the Beauxbatons carriage and the Durmstrang ship arrived at Hogwarts.

Every student at Hogwarts was especially excited to see Viktor Krum, the Bulgarian national Quidditch team's seeker from Durmstrang. Draco himself was a big fan of his Quidditch skills, and hence was glad when Krum and his fellow Durmstrang students sat at the Slytherin table for the welcome feast.

Once the golden plates had been wiped clean, Dumbledore stood up. A pleasant sort of tension seemed to fill the Hall now. Every student was listening to the Headmaster, some even staring at him with great concentration.

"The moment has come," said Dumbledore, smiling around at the sea of upturned faces. "The Triwizard Tournament is about to start. I would like to say a few words of explanation before we bring in the casket, just to clarify the procedure that we will be following this year. But first, let me introduce, for those who do not know them, Mr. Bartemius Crouch, Head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation"—there was a smattering of polite applause—"and Mr. Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports."

There was a much louder round of applause for Bagman than for Crouch, perhaps because of his fame as a Beater, or simply because he looked so much more likable. He acknowledged it with a jovial wave of his hand. Bartemius Crouch did not smile or wave when his name was announced. His toothbrush mustache and severe parting looked very odd next to Dumbledore's long white hair and beard.

"Mr. Bagman and Mr. Crouch have worked tirelessly over the last few months on the arrangements for the Triwizard Tournament," Dumbledore continued, "and they will be joining myself, Professor Karkaroff, and Madame Maxime on the panel that will judge the champions' efforts." The last two being the heads of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons.

At the mention of the word "champions," the attentiveness of the listening students seemed to sharpen. Perhaps Dumbledore had noticed their sudden stillness, for he smiled as he said, "The casket, then, if you please, Mr. Filch."

Filch, who had been lurking unnoticed in a far corner of the Hall, now approached Dumbledore carrying a great wooden chest encrusted with jewels. It looked extremely old. A murmur of excited interest rose from the watching students.

"The instructions for the tasks the champions will face this year have already been examined by Mr. Crouch and Mr. Bagman," said Dumbledore as Filch placed the chest carefully on the table before him, "and they have made the necessary arrangements for each challenge. There will be three tasks, spaced throughout the school year, and they will test the champions in many different ways… their magical prowess—their daring—their powers of deduction—and, of course, their ability to cope with danger."

At this last word, the Hall was filled with a silence so absolute that nobody seemed to be breathing.

"As you know, three champions compete in the tournament," Dumbledore went on calmly, "one from each of the participating schools. They will be marked on how well they perform each of the Tournament tasks and the champion with the highest total after task three will win the Triwizard Cup. The champions will be chosen by an impartial selector: the Goblet of Fire."

Dumbledore now took out his wand and tapped three times upon the top of the casket. The lid creaked slowly open. Dumbledore reached inside it and pulled out a large, roughly hewn wooden cup. It would have been entirely unremarkable had it not been full to the brim with dancing blue white flames.

Dumbledore closed the casket and placed the goblet carefully on top of it, where it would be clearly visible to everyone in the Hall.

"Anybody wishing to submit themselves as champion must write their name and school clearly upon a slip of parchment and drop it into the goblet," said Dumbledore. "Aspiring champions have twenty four hours in which to put their names forward. Tomorrow night, Halloween, the goblet will return the names of the three it has judged most worthy to represent their schools. The goblet will be placed in the entrance hall tonight, where it will be freely accessible to all those wishing to compete.

"To ensure that no underage student yields to temptation," said Dumbledore, "I will be drawing an Age Line around the Goblet of Fire once it has been placed in the entrance hall. Nobody under the age of seventeen will be able to cross this line.

"Finally, I wish to impress upon any of you wishing to compete that this tournament is not to be entered into lightly. Once a champion has been selected by the Goblet of Fire, he or she is obliged to see the tournament through to the end. The placing of your name in the goblet constitutes a binding, magical contract. There can be no change of heart once you have become a champion. Please be very sure, therefore, that you are wholeheartedly prepared to play before you drop your name into the goblet. Now, I think it is time for bed. Good night to you all."

That night, as Draco lay in bed, he thought whether the Age Line would apply to him. _Technically_ , he had lived for more than seventeen years. His memories and knowledge were proof of that. If he dropped his name into the goblet, would he be qualified to enter? He immediately pushed these thoughts aside. He did not want to enter and neither should he play with the already planned destiny. It was Harry Potter, not him who was going to compete in this tournament. He couldn't help thinking that _tonight the Death Eater impersonating professor Moody was going to slip Harry's name into the Goblet!_

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

Thanks for writing reviews everyone. I truly appreciate you taking out your time and efforts to do so.

Chester99, sorry but Draco can't undo the ferret incident with Professor Moody. He has came back to the morning after that incident, and the story starts after that has already happened. As for the Yule Ball, you'll just have to wait and see.


	8. The Fourth Champion

**Hermione**

The whole school was abuzz with the Triwizard Tournament ever since the arrival of the students from the schools of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. She even had to cancel the Arithmancy lesson with Malfoy because they were supposed to welcome the guests. Even though she was unsure at the beginning, these lessons had turned out to be quite interesting for her. She had been giving him a hard time, overloading him with work and according to her that was exactly what he deserved. After three years of hating each other, he had saved her from a fall, talked civilly for another day and then gone on to ignore her afterwards like she had never existed. And for a moment she had thought that he had changed for good. He had never complained about the lessons, and surprisingly he was learning at a very good pace. She doubted that if he continued like this, he was going to overtake her top position at the class at the end of the year. He had not said anything about his sudden behavioral changes earlier and she didn't ask him either because she valued her dignity too much; though she was very much intrigued about it. Instead, she took her quiet revenge in making him work extra hard during their sessions.

The goblet of fire had been placed in the Great Hall, with an Age Line drawn around it by the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore himself to keep the students below seventeen from entering.

When she went down into the entrance hall with Harry and Ron, they saw about twenty people milling around it, some of them eating toast, all examining the Goblet of Fire. It had been placed in the center of the hall on the stool that normally bore the Sorting Hat. A thin golden line had been traced on the floor, forming a circle ten feet around it in every direction.

"Anyone put their name in yet?" Ron asked a third year girl eagerly.

"All the Durmstrang lot," she replied. "But I haven't seen anyone from Hogwarts yet."

"Bet some of them put it in last night after we'd all gone to bed," said Harry. "I would've if it had been me… wouldn't have wanted everyone watching. What if the goblet just gobbed you right back out again?"

Someone laughed behind Hermione. Turning, she saw Fred, George, and Lee Jordan hurrying down the staircase, all three of them looking extremely excited.

"Done it," Fred said in a triumphant whisper to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Just taken it."

"What?" said Ron.

"The Aging Potion, dung brains," said Fred.

"One drop each," said George, rubbing his hands together with glee. "We only need to be a few months older."

"We're going to split the thousand Galleons between the three of us if one of us wins," said Lee, grinning broadly.

"I'm not sure this is going to work, you know," said Hermione warningly. "I'm sure Dumbledore will have thought of this." They may be fools enough to underestimate Dumbledore, but she wasn't.

Fred, George, and Lee ignored her.

"Ready?" Fred said to the other two, quivering with excitement. "C'mon, then—I'll go first—"

Hermione watched, as Fred pulled a slip of parchment out of his pocket bearing the words Fred Weasley—Hogwarts. Fred walked right up to the edge of the line and stood there, rocking on his toes like a diver preparing for a fifty foot drop. Then, with the eyes of every person in the entrance hall upon him, he took a great breath and stepped over the line.

For a split second Hermione thought it had worked—George certainly thought so, for he let out a yell of triumph and leapt after Fred—but next moment, there was a loud sizzling sound, and both twins were hurled out of the golden circle as though they had been thrown by an invisible shot putter. They landed painfully, ten feet away on the cold stone floor, and to add insult to injury, there was a loud popping noise, and both of them sprouted identical long white beards.

The entrance hall rang with laughter. Even Fred and George joined in, once they had gotten to their feet and taken a good look at each other's beards.

"I did warn you," said a deep, amused voice, and everyone turned to see Professor Dumbledore coming out of the Great Hall. He surveyed Fred and George, his eyes twinkling. "I suggest you both go up to Madam Pomfrey. She is already tending to Miss Fawcett, of Ravenclaw, and Mr. Summers, of Hufflepuff, both of whom decided to age themselves up a little too. Though I must say, neither of their beards is anything like as fine as yours."

Fred and George set off for the hospital wing, accompanied by Lee, who was howling with laughter, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione, also chortling, went in to breakfast.

The decorations in the Great Hall had changed this morning. As it was Halloween, a cloud of live bats was fluttering around the enchanted ceiling, while hundreds of carved pumpkins leered from every corner. Harry led the way over to Dean and Seamus, who were discussing those Hogwarts students of seventeen or over who might be entering.

"There's a rumor going around that Warrington got up early and put his name in," Dean told Harry. "That big bloke from Slytherin who looks like a sloth."

Harry, who had played Quidditch against Warrington, shook his head in disgust.

"We can't have a Slytherin champion!"

"And all the Hufflepuffs are talking about Diggory," said Seamus contemptuously. "But I wouldn't have thought he'd have wanted to risk his good looks."

"Listen!" said Hermione suddenly, hearing the noise coming from the hall.

People were cheering out in the entrance hall. They all swiveled around in their seats and saw Angelina Johnson coming into the Hall, grinning in an embarrassed sort of way. A tall black girl who played Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Angelina came over to them, sat down, and said, "Well, I've done it! Just put my name in!"

"You're kidding!" said Ron, looking impressed.

"Are you seventeen, then?" asked Harry.

"Course she is, can't see a beard, can you?" said Ron.

"I had my birthday last week," said Angelina.

"Well, I'm glad someone from Gryffindor's entering," said Hermione. "I really hope you get it, Angelina!"

"Thanks, Hermione," said Angelina, smiling at her.

"Yeah, better you than—Pretty Boy Diggory," said Seamus, causing several Hufflepuffs passing their table to scowl heavily at him.

Hermione sighed. Somehow everything came to be about Quidditch with them. Yet, she hoped Angelina became the school champion, being a Gryffindor and also because Hermione secretly wanted a girl to win the Tournament.

The Halloween feast seemed to take much longer than usual. At long last, the golden plates returned to their original spotless state; there was a sharp upswing in the level of noise within the Hall, which died away almost instantly as Dumbledore got to his feet. On either side of him, Professor Karkaroff and Madame Maxime looked as tense and expectant as anyone. Ludo Bagman was beaming and winking at various students. Mr. Crouch, however, looked quite uninterested, almost bored.

"Well, the goblet is almost ready to make its decision," said Dumbledore. "I estimate that it requires one more minute. Now, when the champions' names are called, I would ask them please to come up to the top of the Hall, walk along the staff table, and go through into the next chamber"—he indicated the door behind the staff table—"where they will be receiving their first instructions."

He took out his wand and gave a great sweeping wave with it; at once, all the candles except those inside the carved pumpkins were extinguished, plunging them into a state of semidarkness. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall, the sparkling bright, bluey whiteness of the flames almost painful on the eyes. Everyone watched, waiting… A few people kept checking their watches…

"Any second," Lee Jordan whispered, two seats away from Hermione.

The flames inside the goblet turned suddenly red again. Sparks began to fly from it. Next moment, a tongue of flame shot into the air, a charred piece of parchment fluttered out of it—the whole room gasped.

Dumbledore caught the piece of parchment and held it at arm's length, so that he could read it by the light of the flames, which had turned back to blue white.

"The champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum."

"No surprises there!" yelled Ron as a storm of applause and cheering swept the Hall. Hermione saw Viktor Krum rise from the Slytherin table and slouch up toward Dumbledore; he turned right, walked along the staff table, and disappeared through the door into the next chamber.

"Bravo, Viktor!" boomed Karkaroff, so loudly that everyone could hear him, even over all the applause. "Knew you had it in you!"

The clapping and chatting died down. Now everyone's attention was focused again on the goblet, which, seconds later, turned red once more. A second piece of parchment shot out of it, propelled by the flames.

"The champion for Beauxbatons," said Dumbledore, "is Fleur Delacour!"

"It's her, Ron!" Harry shouted as the girl who so resembled a veela got gracefully to her feet, shook back her sheet of silvery blonde hair, and swept up between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables.

"Oh look, they're all disappointed," Hermione said over the noise, nodding toward the remainder of the Beauxbatons party. "Disappointed" was a bit of an understatement, she thought. Two of the girls who had not been selected had dissolved into tears and were sobbing with their heads on their arms.

When Fleur Delacour too had vanished into the side chamber, silence fell again, but this time it was a silence so stiff with excitement you could almost taste it. The Hogwarts champion next…

And the Goblet of Fire turned red once more; sparks showered out of it; the tongue of flame shot high into the air, and from its tip Dumbledore pulled the third piece of parchment.

"The Hogwarts champion," he called, "is Cedric Diggory!"

"No!" said Ron loudly, but nobody seemed to hear him; the uproar from the next table was too great. Every single Hufflepuff had jumped to his or her feet, screaming and stamping, as Cedric made his way past them, grinning broadly, and headed off toward the chamber behind the teachers' table. Indeed, the applause for Cedric went on so long that it was some time before Dumbledore could make himself heard again.

"Excellent!" Dumbledore called happily as at last the tumult died down. "Well, we now have our three champions. I am sure I can count upon all of you, including the remaining students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, to give your champions every ounce of support you can muster. By cheering your champion on, you will contribute in a very real—"

But Dumbledore suddenly stopped speaking, and it was apparent to everybody what had distracted him.

The fire in the goblet had just turned red again. Sparks were flying out of it. A long flame shot suddenly into the air, and borne upon it was another piece of parchment.

Automatically, it seemed, Dumbledore reached out a long hand and seized the parchment. He held it out and stared at the name written upon it. There was a long pause, during which Dumbledore stared at the slip in his hands, and everyone in the room stared at Dumbledore. And then Dumbledore cleared his throat and read out

" _Harry Potter_."

Hermione couldn't believe her ears. Every head in the Great Hall had turned to look at him. She was stunned. She was surely dreaming. She had not heard correctly.

There was no applause. A buzzing, as though of angry bees, was starting to fill the Hall; some students were standing up to get a better look at Harry as he sat, frozen, in his seat.

Up at the top table, Professor McGonagall had got to her feet and swept past Ludo Bagman and Professor Karkaroff to whisper urgently to Professor Dumbledore, who bent his ear toward her, frowning slightly.

Harry turned to Ron and Hermione; Hermione could tell that this was as shocking to him as it was to her.

"I didn't put my name in," Harry said blankly. "You know I didn't."

Both of them stared just as blankly back.

At the top table, Professor Dumbledore had straightened up, nodding to Professor McGonagall.

" **Harry Potter!"** he called again. " **Harry! Up here, if you please!** "

"Go on," Hermione whispered, giving Harry a slight push. She didn't want him to go through any longer public humiliation than necessary.

She watched as Harry made his way to Dumbledore still in shock, stumbling on his way.

As Harry passed the staff table, every teacher was watching him with blank expression, except Professor Snape. His eyes were somewhere towards the Slytherin table, his expression unfathomable.

Hermione traced his glance to find that he was looking at Draco Malfoy. The strange thing was Malfoy did not look surprised by the announcement at all. Every single student in the Great Hall, even the teachers were startled by curious behavior of the Goblet of Fire; but not him. He watching everything with complete ease, somehow the incident seemed amusing to him judging by the slight smirk on his face. There was definitely something fishy about this, Hermione thought. And so did Snape, apparently.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Here's the next chapter! Hope you like it. Loving the reviews, keep them coming! ;)**


	9. A Friend in Need

**Hermione**

After Harry had vanished into the next chamber, the Great Hall was instantly filled with the buzzing sound of students whispering about the incident that had just occurred. She thought miserably about her best friend, _everything seemed to happen only to Harry Potter_. She hoped the judges won't let him enter the Tournament, maybe Dumbledore would try at least. Hermione turned to look at Ron, who had turned a shade of red and was sitting rather stiffly in his chair. She couldn't understand the reason behind his behavior but she came to know soon enough.

"He could've at least told me, you know. I wouldn't have stopped him." Ron muttered angrily.

" _What_?" Hermione couldn't believe her ears for the second time that evening. Ron whom Harry considered his best friend, was the one doubting him.

"I reckon he didn't want any more competition. _Still_ , I could've given it a try at least." Ron continued grumpily, not noticing Hermione's shocked tone.

"You _seriously_ believe Harry put his name into the Goblet?" Hermione asked incredulously.

"Yes. Harry said it himself, if he wanted to put his name he would've done it in the night without anyone watching, _didn't you hear earlier?_ I think that is _exactly_ what he did." Ron answered, hoping to make her see his point.

"But he was only kidding then. I don't believe he did it himself. Someone else _must've_ put his name in the Goblet. Harry would never want all this attention." Hermione said, looking around the excited chatter in the Hall.

"Interesting though, isn't it? Attention _is_ all he gets. _Always_." Ron grumbled.

Hermione reasoned it was best not to push Ron at this moment. Hopefully, when Harry came back from the champions' meeting, he and Ron would talk and things will be cleared.

After Dumbledore had dismissed them to go back to their houses, the students began dispersing. Hermione noticed as Professor Snape had called Draco to a corner and was whispering something. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but when they had finished she saw that Professor Snape's expressions were grim.

Harry had not yet returned when she retired to her dormitory. Hermione picked up her favourite fairy tale book, "Beauty and the Beast" and read herself to sleep.

The next day when she went for the breakfast, she found Ron at the Gryffindor table, Harry was yet to arrive. He still looked grumpy, so she sat silently beside him.

"I asked him last night. He refused to tell me." Ron stated in a cold voice.

"Ron, _maybe_ he really didn't put his name into the Goblet of Fire." Hermione tried.

"Yeah, you always take his side." Ron hissed.

Hermione didn't risk making his mood worse so she sat in silence and ate her breakfast. After Ron had finished, he went off with their other Gryffindor classmates. Hermione waited for a while, but realized that Harry wasn't coming to the Great Hall afterall. She packed him some breakfast and made her way back towards the Gryffindor Tower.

Just outside the portrait hole, she met Harry who was certainly not in his best form.

"Hello," she said, holding up a stack of toast, which she was carrying in a napkin. "I brought you this… Want to go for a walk?"

"Good idea," said Harry gratefully.

They went downstairs, crossed the entrance hall quickly without looking in at the Great Hall, and were soon striding across the lawn toward the lake, where the Durmstrang ship was moored, reflected blackly in the water. It was a chilly morning, and they kept moving, munching their toast, as Harry told Hermione exactly what had happened after he had left the Gryffindor table the night before. He described how the heads and the professors had argued about the validity of his participation and at the end Mr. Crouch had the final word that he was to be allowed to enter into the Tournament because the Goblet of Fire constituted a binding contract, even Dumbledore couldn't argue with that. He also told her about professor Moody's views on the matter. The champions had been told that the first task would take place on November the twenty fourth, in front of the other students and the panel of judges. The champions were not permitted to ask for or accept help of any kind from their teachers to complete the tasks in the tournament. The champions were also exempted from end-of-year tests.

Hermione heard him in complete silence and saw that he was visibly relieved that she had believed his story.

"Well, of course I knew you hadn't entered yourself," she said when he'd finished telling her about the scene in the chamber off the Hall. "The look on your face when Dumbledore read out your name! But the question is, _who did put it in_? Because Moody's right, Harry… I don't think any student could have done it… they'd never be able to fool the Goblet, or get over Dumbledore's—" Now that she considered it, Malfoy couldn't have put Harry's name in the Goblet as she had initially suspected.

"Have you seen Ron?" Harry interrupted.

Hermione hesitated. She didn't want to get in between their fight.

"Erm… yes… he was at breakfast," she said.

"Does he still think I entered myself?"

"Well… no, I don't think so… not really," said Hermione awkwardly.

"What's that supposed to mean, 'not really'?"

"Oh Harry, isn't it obvious?" Hermione said despairingly. "He's jealous!"

"Jealous?" Harry said incredulously. "Jealous of what? He wants to make a prat of himself in front of the whole school, does he?"

"Look," said Hermione patiently, "it's always you who gets all the attention, you know it is. I know it's not your fault," she added quickly, seeing Harry open his mouth furiously. "I know you don't ask for it… but—well—you know, Ron's got all those brothers to compete against at home, and you're his best friend, and you're really famous—he's always shunted to one side whenever people see you, and he puts up with it, and he never mentions it, but I suppose this is just one time too many…" she tried to explain as best as she could.

"Great," said Harry bitterly. "Really great. Tell him from me I'll swap any time he wants. Tell him from me he's welcome to it… People gawping at my forehead everywhere I go…"

"I'm not telling him anything," Hermione said shortly. "Tell him yourself. It's the only way to sort this out."

"I'm not running around after him trying to make him grow up!" Harry said, so loudly that several owls in a nearby tree took flight in alarm. "Maybe he'll believe I'm not enjoying myself once I've got my neck broken or—"

"That's not funny," said Hermione quietly. "That's not funny at all." She was extremely anxious. "Harry, I've been thinking—you know what we've got to do, don't you? Straight away, the moment we get back to the castle?"

"Yeah, give Ron a good kick up the—"

" _Write to Sirius_. You've got to tell him what's happened. He asked you to keep him posted on everything that's going on at Hogwarts… It's almost as if he expected something like this to happen. I brought some parchment and a quill out with me—"

"Come off it," said Harry, looking around to check that they couldn't be overheard, but the grounds were quite deserted. "He came back to the country just because my scar twinged. He'll probably come bursting right into the castle if I tell him someone's entered me in the Triwizard Tournament—"

"He'd _want_ you to tell him," said Hermione sternly. "He's going to find out anyway."

"How?"

"Harry, this isn't going to be kept quiet," said Hermione, very seriously. "This tournament's famous, and you're famous. I'll be really surprised if there isn't anything in the Daily Prophet about you competing… You're already in half the books about You-Know-Who, you know… and Sirius would rather hear it from you, I know he would."

"Okay, okay, I'll write to him," said Harry, throwing his last piece of toast into the lake. They both stood and watched it floating there for a moment, before a large tentacle rose out of the water and scooped it beneath the surface. Then they returned to the castle.

"Whose owl am I going to use?" Harry said as they climbed the stairs. "He told me not to use Hedwig again."

"Ask Ron if you can borrow—" she tried.

"I'm not asking Ron for anything," Harry said flatly.

"Well, borrow one of the school owls, then, anyone can use them," said Hermione.

They went up to the Owlery. Hermione gave Harry a piece of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink, then strolled around the long lines of perches, looking at all the different owls giving him some privacy, while Harry sat down against a wall and wrote his letter. At least, he had listened to her one advice.

The classes that day were a mess, especially for Harry. Almost one-third of the school, except for the Gryffindors, were supporting Cedric Diggory as the Hogwarts champion, meanwhile taunting Harry about his desperation to get attention. Some people even had badges that said, SUPPORT CEDRIC DIGGORY—THE REAL HOGWARTS CHAMPION! at the front and POTTER STINKS at the back. Most of the Slytherins were wearing it, but Hermione was surprised that Draco Malfoy wasn't among them and he was surprisingly being very quiet about the whole affair.

Harry had been called in between the Potions class for champions' photographs, much to Professor Snape's dislike. He didn't return till the evening and so Hermione went ahead to the library, remembering that she had the Arithmancy lesson with Malfoy.

Hermione found Malfoy already lounging at their supposed table, waiting for her. She resisted asking about what the conversation with Snape was about last night, and continued with the lesson. They had now reached to an advanced level and she was glad that soon this whole teaching affair will end. Today however, she was too concerned about Harry to concentrate on the subject.

"Granger, it's okay if you want to reschedule today. We have already covered enough. Missing a day won't affect us much." Malfoy had said when she had mismatched the number charts.

"No way! We have already lost one class over the stupid welcome ceremony we had for our guests. We will continue." Hermione said sternly and continued the lesson after correcting her chart.

" _Hermione!_ " Hermione heard Harry's shocked voice. Apparently he had come looking for her in the library, as Ron was no longer talking to him. She remembered that she hadn't told Harry or Ron about the classes with Malfoy as they had too much bad blood, hence the shock on Harry's face seeing her sitting and conversing with Malfoy, of all people.

Hermione motioned Harry to sit at their table quietly, as Madam Pince was glaring at them now; she had heard Harry's loud exclaim. Malfoy looked surprised that she had not told her best friends about these classes, but he chose not to comment.

"Well, I have been told by Professor Vector to help Malfoy with his lesson, so I teach him here every other day for a couple of hours." Hermione explained, while Malfoy sat smirking to himself.

"And why did you keep this from me? Does _Ron_ know?" Harry asked, though it seemed he already knew the answer. If Ron had known he would've told Harry.

"No." answered Hermione.

Harry was now eying Malfoy suspiciously.

"Go on then, taunt me and get over it. Won't do much to keep it to yourself and continue smirking forever, Malfoy!" Harry said rudely to him.

"Well I had no intention of taunting you right now Potter, I was under the impression you are getting enough of that already." Malfoy said in a blank voice.

Harry, who was surprised to hear him talk this sensibly _(so was Hermione)_ asked, "So, _you_ don't think I put my name in the Goblet? For eternal glory?"

"I know that you are stupid, but not stupid enough to risk your life for it. Although if it had been Weasley, I wouldn't have been surprised." said Malfoy coolly.

Hermione couldn't help but admire Malfoy's great judgement about people.

"Now, if all the pleasantries are over, can we get on with the lesson, please?" continued Malfoy, when both Harry and Hermione were staring at him.

"Just a few minutes ago you wanted to ditch the class, and now all you want to do is study, _is it_?" Hermione said squinting her eyes.

"I gave you the chance to quit earlier, you refused. Now, I'm only going to ask this once again. Would you cancel today's session to take care of your best friend who is currently _more_ in need of your assistance than I am right now?" asked Malfoy.

"Okay." agreed Hermione. His words regardless of the way he'd put them, made sense. She should be with Harry at the moment. _When had Draco Malfoy become so thoughtful!_ she wondered, and looking at Harry she knew he did too. They both were staring at Malfoy, as he had collected his things and was exiting the library.

"You are having a good effect on him." Harry said to Hermione after Malfoy was gone.

"I don't know about that. We spend all the time studying, we never really talk about anything." Hermione answered.

"Hm.. I haven't seen him being so considerate before." Harry commented before he told her about the wand weighing ceremony and his interview with Rita Skeeter.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

Another chapter! Thanks for the encouraging reviews, I'm really grateful. Feel free to share your assessments, I love reading them.

As per the book, there was an incident before the Potions class where Harry and Draco had thrown spells at each other. Draco's spell had hit Hermione making her teeth grow, which had to be fixed by Madam Pomphrey. For the purpose of the story, this incident has already happened in their third year; and Hermione's teeth are already fixed before the start of the story.

Special thanks to Chester99, TinySlippers, and Irmorena for your continued support. It means a lot to me.

Another important thing, guys. I won't be able to post new updates so soon from now on. There's a HermionexSnape idea that had been swirling around my head, and I need to start writing about them too. Doesn't mean I am abandoning this story, just keep it on your alerts for an update. If you are interested in that story, you can check **'Decoding Professor Snape'** or **'An Un'official' Love Story'** on my profile.


	10. Making New Friends

**Draco**

Like he had expected, Harry Potter's name had come out of the Goblet of Fire. What he had _not_ expected was that Professor Snape would corner him after the incident.

"Did _you_ put his name in the Goblet? I want the truth, Draco." Snape had hissed at him once they were out of everyone else's earshot.

"No sir! I didn't." Draco answered truthfully.

Snape was still staring murderously at him, so he continued quietly, "Sir, I haven't done anything to change the future yet."

That seemed to satisfy the professor. Snape couldn't help asking, "You _know_ who put his name in the Goblet, then?"

Draco nodded, but didn't say anything further. After a few moments, Snape let go of him to follow through the same door the champions had vanished to.

Draco had looked around to see if anyone had noticed this conversation. But the students were too startled with what had happened, they were busy gossiping among themselves to notice anything else.

He had mostly kept to himself the other day. He had taken the badge supporting Diggory and insulting Potter when offered by Theodore Nott a fellow Slytherin, considering his self-proclaimed rivalry with Harry Potter; but he never wore it. He could see that Harry Potter was in enough pain himself without Draco insulting him further. The whole school except for the Gryffindors, were against Potter and were leaving no chance to humiliate him. It was easy for him to remain unnoticed as all the attention was on Harry Potter. Draco recalled how he used to feel jealous about Potter's popularity but now all he felt was sympathy for the boy.

During the Care of Magical Creatures class, Draco noticed that despite the unfortunate incident with his favourite student Potter, Hagrid was in a good mood. He then remembered about the dragons. Dragons were going to be used for the first task and the gamekeeper had an immense liking for them. Draco himself had never seen a dragon up close. He wished he would get an opportunity to do so now that the dragons were in the school compound.

That evening, he had taken up his usual spot at the library, and was going over the book ' **Important Muggle Inventions'**. Muggle Studies was proving to be a difficult subject for him, having no experience about the muggle world. Some of the inventions in this book did not seem as important to him as they were apparently to the Muggles.

Right when he was wondering what the importance of refrigerator was when you had freezing spells, he noticed Hermione Granger walk inside the library. He quickly hid the book inside his bag and took out his Arithmancy charts instead.

It was evident to Draco since the beginning of the lesson that there was something bothering Hermione Granger today; instead of the usual enthusiastic voice she used when she talked about her favorite subject, her tone was noticeable blank today; she had even mismatched the number charts, which she had never done before. Draco knew that missing one class wasn't going to affect their progress too much, and he tried to tell her to take the day off.

But she had stubbornly replied, " _No way!_ We have already lost one class over the stupid welcome ceremony we had for our guests. We will continue."

Draco didn't push her any further. The Gryffindors had this stupid thing about pride; they tended to do exactly what you tell them not to, even if it's against their own good. So, they continued, till Harry Potter made his entrance to the library.

Harry had apparently been shocked to see his best friend, Hermione Granger with him. She had probably not told him about their Arithmancy lessons. _But why_ , Draco thought. It was a perfect chance for her to let her friends know that he sucked at a subject.

Harry had asked Hermione about the reason, but she hadn't answered. Draco was curious himself but he didn't want Hermione to know that. But he couldn't help wondering if Hermione did that to save herself from the wrath of her friends if they found out she'd been helping the enemy. The thought made him smile.

Harry had now turned his attention towards him. " _Go on_ then, taunt me and get over it. Won't do much to keep it to yourself and continue smirking forever, Malfoy!"

Draco knew that Harry expected him to comment about his surprise entry into the Tournament; of course he couldn't exactly have guessed the real reason behind his smile. He had seen many students give Potter a hard time, and being his self-declared archenemy Draco was also expected to contribute. If it was the old Draco, he would've done exactly what was expected of him; but this time, he was better than that.

"Well I had no intention of taunting you _right now_ Potter, I was under the impression you are getting enough of that already." He said, hoping he didn't sound too soft.

The effect was exactly what he had expected, Harry was stunned. "So, _you_ don't think I put my name in the Goblet? For _eternal_ glory?"

"I know that you _are_ stupid, but not stupid enough to risk your life for it. Although if it had been Weasley, I _wouldn't_ have been surprised." Draco said coolly, _if Weasley could dump Hermione Granger in the future, he was capable of anything._

"Now, if all the pleasantries are over, can we get on with the lesson, please?" he said, when he noticed them both gaping at him.

"Just a few minutes ago _you_ wanted to ditch the class, and now all you want to do is study, _is it_?" Hermione said squinting her eyes. _Ooh, has she started liking the idiot Weasley already?_

"I gave you the chance to quit earlier, you refused. Now, I'm only going to ask this once again. Would you cancel today's session to take care of your best friend who is currently more in need of your assistance than I am right now?" he asked, hoping to get an affirmative response.

And Granger agreed. _She had some brains afterall_.

Draco wasted no time in clearing up from the table and escaping the library. After so many days, he finally had a free evening to himself.

He wondered what he should do, and soon settled on getting some fresh air for a change. He quickly made his way towards the school grounds. He met Blaise Zabini on his way, who was hanging around with the two of his fellow Slytherin friends, Theodore Nott and Adrian Pucey. Blaise had mentioned them to Draco on several occasions.

"Hello, Draco! Fancy seeing you here, at _this_ hour." Blaise greeted him. He knew about his lessons with Hermione and was teasing him on purpose.

"Yeah, I had some free time and I thought about taking in some fresh air." said Draco to Blaise. Turning towards the other two he gave them each a curt nod, "Nott, Pucey."

"Oh please, Draco. Call me Adrian, I don't really like being called by my surname." Adrian said, smiling at Draco and giving him a handshake.

"And I prefer Theo." said Theodore, extending his hand.

"Yeah, they are _too_ kind for Slytherins." Blaise said, looking at the slight surprise on his face on being greeted so warmly.

"Okay, I'll admit that was a _little_ warm. But only because you are a fellow Slytherin." Adrian said.

"And it would be better to be friends with Draco Malfoy, than his enemy." Theo added.

"Spoken like a true Slytherin!" Draco laughed, and the rest of them joined him.

Draco and the company sat together by the Black Lake, exchanging small talk. Draco was having a good time; he was beginning to enjoy even Adrian and Theo's company. He wondered why he hadn't chosen these people as his friends instead of just sticking with Crabbe and Goyle. The answer was simple: He understood the importance of friendship and loyalty much later in life, at his own personal loss. Being alone for so many years had taught him at least one big lesson; it's not a good way to live your life.

"So, Potter has _somehow_ managed to sneak his way to the Tournament. What do y'all think are his chances?" asked Theo.

"It's a suicide mission, if you ask me. Champions have _died_ in the past. I wonder if Potter is now regretting his rash decision." Blaise said, laughing.

"Looking at his face today during the classes, sure felt that way. Nice idea for the badges, Theo." Adrian said, giving Theo a pat on his back.

"Well, I couldn't help it. If we keep fueling Potter's desire for attention, what's to say he won't expect us to build a monument of him one day?" Theo replied.

They all laughed at this, Draco only forcibly. He knew that this would soon be true; _after all it was going to be Harry Potter who will save them from the darkest wizard of all time._

"What do _you_ think, Draco? You have been quite vocal about Potter in the past, what about this time?" asked Blaise.

Draco knew they were waiting for his response; and also that it carried some weight for his fellow Slytherins. He thought for a while, before answering.

"I think we'll have to wait for the First Task before taking Potter out of the race. And he is _afterall_ a Hogwarts champion. If Diggory slacks, Potter might even win the Cup for us. In the end if Hogwarts wins the Cup, does it _really_ matter who did it?"

"Yeah, you are probably right. There is a tight competition for the Triwizard Cup. Viktor Krum looks formidable enough; heck, even the Veela may have some tricks up her sleeves." Theo said, while the rest murmured their assents.

"Talking about the Veelas, do you reckon there are more of them at Beauxbatons? I probably should've enrolled there." Adrian commented, earning a smack from Blaise.

"Then you would've missed on meeting some _great_ people. _Like me_." Blaise said.

"Or do you mean _you_ would've missed out on meeting _me_?" shrugged Adrian.

"You _do_ know that sounds desperately like a couple?" commented Theo.

And they all laughed.

They stayed in the grounds long after the sun went down; and only when Theo reminded them that it was time for the dinner, did they get up.

"I'm starving today. I hope we have a delicious meal waiting; in the honor of the guests, I mean." Theo said, hiding his excitement poorly.

"You'll probably _move_ them all here at Hogwarts for another year, just for better meals." Blaise laughed.

When they reached the stairs to the castle, Draco felt something tug at his stomach. He couldn't explain it; but there was definitely something inside him, pulling him back to the grounds. Controlling his impulse to run back the way he had come, he focused on the people he was with.

When he finally reached the Great Hall, filled with students; all chattering happily as they ate delicious smelling meals, Draco realized that the pull had subsided. Still, there was a small part of him that wanted him out of the castle.

Draco spent that night in the Slytherin common room, along with Blaise, Adrain and Theo. Theo knew some house-elves who worked in the kitchens and he had snuck in various snacks and drinks. They chatted away on various topics, made fun of Neville as well as every other Gryffindor they could, cursed Moody for taking away their points and finally drank to their newfound friendship. Before they knew it, they had fallen asleep on the armchairs by the fire.

Draco dreamt of a strange voice, urging him to come and claim his destiny. When he asked the voice what his destiny was, it said that everything will be clear to him once he discovers his steed. The voice also told him that the only thing he needed to do was to step outside the castle and find it.

When Draco woke up the next morning, his back aching from the chair; the voice in his head was louder and clearer: " _Come... seek me... ...My Lord_."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **First of all, I can't tell you how grateful I am for your continued appreciation and support. Thank you to all the people who've favorited, followed and reviewed the story.**

 **KyuubiNoPuma, thank you for your kind words. I hope the story keeps meeting your expections further.**

 **Irmorena, Chester99, you'll just have to wait a few more chapters to find out about what changes happen in the Tournament. Although, please give me your views on whether you would want Cedric to die or be saved. And again, thanks for your continued support.**

 **Joyl9199, hopefully other updates will come sooner. Thank you for appreciating the story.**

 **Zhi'rev, thank you so much for your lovely reviews, I loved reading them. As a Slytherin myself, I admit I am a little biased towards them. I hope you continue to enjoy the story.**

 **TinySlippers and SeaWitch225, thank you for your reviews.**

 **I'm thinking of adding some extra adventures for Draco, increasing his role in the War to come and giving him his own destiny. Keep writing reviews, guys. It were your reviews, which motivated me to continue the story.**


	11. Draco Dormiens Numquam Titillandus

**Draco**

Draco glanced around him; the other three Slytherins were still passed out in their armchairs. He thought that the voice that's been haunting him was all in his dream; but his confusion was cleared soon enough when the voice called again, " _My Lord…"_

Draco was suddenly alert, all his drowsiness gone. He finally accepted that the voice was real and the speaker was calling for him. And somehow, he wanted to follow the voice.

He wasted no time in getting ready, using his wand to tidy himself up. When he was leaving the dungeons, nobody else had woken yet; owing to the fact that it was an early Sunday morning.

Draco found his way out of the castle quite easily, with no one interrupting him. He walked along the Black Lake and through the gamekeeper's wooden hut; straight into the Forbidden Forest. Draco's past experiences of the forest hadn't been so great and he had avoided it as best as he could in the past. But today, it just felt like the right thing to do.

When he had walked so far around the perimeter of the forest that the castle and the lake were out of sight—Draco heard something. Men were shouting up ahead… then came a deafening, earsplitting roar…

The sound subsided soon enough, after a large thud; although Draco could still hear some men talking. He walked around a clump of trees and came to a halt. There was a large enclosure fenced with thick planks of wood, and inside it were four fully grown dragons. They all appeared asleep, probably passed out judging by their steaming mouths; each of them was the size of a small hill. There were around thirty wizards monitoring them. Draco moved closer into the shadows of the trees, careful not to be spotted.

"I wonder what made them _this_ excited so early in the morning. We gave them a Sleeping Draft last night, didn't we?" the wizard closest to Draco said to his partner as they proceeded to tighten the chains and fasten them securely to iron pegs, which they forced deep into the ground with their wands.

"We did, Charlie. Their behavior is certainly odd, but it can happen because of the new environment and them losing some of their freedom." The other wizard answered.

"Yeah. Dragons aren't supposed to be kept tied up this way, it's in their nature to be wild. Especially this Hungarian Horntail." Charlie was saying to his partner as they both proceeded forwards towards the base of their camp at the far end of the enclosure.

When Draco was sure that all the wizards in the vicinity had left their posts and returned to their base, he climbed up the wooden fence and entered into the enclosure. He quietly laughed at the person who had thought of the wooden fencing, probably their gamekeeper Hagrid; these dragons could've easily burn it down with their fiery breaths.

Draco observed the nearest dragon. This was the Hungarian Horntail, according to the dragonkeeper who had just left. It was a massive black lizard like dragon, with black scales yellow eyes, bronze horns and similarly coloured spikes that protruded from its long tail. To Draco, she looked magnificent.

Then, Draco noticed a clutch of huge granite gray eggs at the dragon's side. Almost reflexively, he picked one up in his hands. The egg felt hot in his bare hands.

And then all at once there was a scraping noise and the egg split open. The baby dragon flopped onto Draco's hands. It looked like a crumpled, black umbrella. Its spiny wings were larger compared to its skinny jet body, it had a long snout with wide nostrils, the stubs of horns and bulging, yellow eyes.

It sneezed. A couple of sparks flew out of its snout.

Draco blinked in surprise. This was the second time he had witnessed a dragon egg hatch. He recalled a similar incident in his very first year, when he had looked inside Hagrid's hut on instinct and watched a dragon egg hatch. He had felt a bit odd even then, but the joy of having something against Potter and his friends had distracted him at that time.

The baby dragon looked directly at him, and Draco heard the same voice speak inside his mind again, " _My Lord."_

Draco, who was taken by surprise, stumbled and his one hand inevitably reached the scaly hides of the mother dragon. He was instantly reminded of the Hogwarts School Motto: 'Draco Dormiens Numquam Titillandus'; Latin for Never tickle a sleeping dragon.

The mother dragon had now opened his vertical eyelids to reveal large gleaming yellow eyes. To Draco's relief, she wasn't making any move to harm him; instead she was just observing him intently lying still, perhaps pretending to be passed out to the dragonkeepers. He realized that the dragons were more intelligent than the wizards gave them credit for. Draco even had a suspicion that she had been watching him ever since he had picked up the egg.

Draco heard another strange voice speak in his head, deeper and hoarser; " _Don't worry, My Lord. We would never hurt you. It's just taking us a while to grasp that a DragonLord has arisen after so many centuries._ "

Draco realized that the dragon was referring herself in plural. He turned around to find another three sets of vertical eyes, staring at him. He managed to speak but it came out in a strange tongue, " _I... don't understand."_

" _We had lost all hopes of seeing another DragonLord again. You are the first one in centuries."_ the same deep voice, which Draco now realized was mother Horntail's, spoke.

" _But how can I... be a Dragon…Lord? Maybe you're all mistaken_." Draco said, unsure.

The baby dragon in his hand now danced playfully and its voice spoke, " _I have no doubts, My Lord. I know you are the one. I can feel the bond between us. You are my DragonRider."_

Draco was having a hard time believing the things he was hearing. He looked around to find that the four grown dragons were still looking at him intently. Feeling like he was expected to say something, he said, " _It's a lot to take in. Are you_ really _sure?"_

" _The fact that you can hear us is proof enough. A DragonLord is born when two fire-bloodlines come together. It hasn't happened in quite a long time, maybe because there aren't many pure-blooded wizards left and most importantly because the wizarding community has lost touch with our species. Dragons haven't taken the absence of our masters very well. We have lost all our past glory and are reduced to a mere breeding species on the mercy of a few wizards. And now this little dragon has sought his Rider, perhaps our glorious days will return once again."_ another deep voice spoke which Draco assumed to be from the silvery blue dragon with long, pointed horns.

The baby dragon in Draco's hands snorted happily and looked up at him. Draco felt a sudden rush of joy pass through his own mind.

The red one dragon with an odd fringe of fine gold spikes around its face now spoke, " _The Elders would've sensed the bonding too. I expect they'll all be gathering to meet the new DragonLord soon._ "

Draco couldn't help but feel a bit apprehensive at the mention of the Elders.

The Hungarian Horntail seemed to guess his uneasiness and she explained, " _The Elders are the oldest living dragons of each of our twelve species. The moment my egg hatched in your hands and this little dragon acknowledged you as his Rider, a bond formed between you two; marking you as the DragonLord. All of us dragons have felt the impact, and I'm sure the Elders will propose a formal gathering recognizing your emergence soon enough. It may take some time, given that the dragons are distributed all around the world_."

Draco took in the new information for a moment and then said, " _I understand_."

The smooth scaled green dragon, who was nearest to the wizard camp spoke, " _I think some keepers are coming around for a round of patrol, you shouldn't be caught here, young DragonLord._ "

Draco felt odd at being addressed as such, but he thanked the dragon nonetheless, hoping she could hear him even at this distance. He gently put the baby dragon in his hands down to the ground at his mother's side. The dragon didn't seem happy at the parting, but his mother said to him, " _Come now little one, the Lord needs to leave now_."

Draco couldn't help but give the little dragon a pat before leaving and said, " _Don't worry. I'll come back for you_."

As Draco walked back into the castle, he felt as if he was in a dream. He even pinched his arm to check but ended up with a sharp pain and tearful eyes. When he reached the Slytherin common room, he nudged the three boys awake who were still slumped in their armchairs.

" _Blimey_ , what time is it?" Blaise asked, still yawning.

"About eight." Draco answered.

"It's _Sunday_ , Draco. For God's sake." Theo muttered as he collapsed into his armchair again.

"C'mon, Theo. You'll miss the breakfast, if you don't wake up soon enough." Draco said, and it had the desired effect on Theo, who now sat in his chair grudgingly.

"I _don't_ want to eat anything. Just let me have some sleep." Adrian muttered, his eyes still closed.

But Blaise gave him a sharp nudge and he too got up from the chair, rubbing his sleepy eyes.

Draco waited while the three of them got to the dormitory to freshen up. He did not want to think about his earlier conversation with the dragons just yet. He decided not to tell anyone about the dragons, not even Professor Snape or the Headmaster. This was something that hadn't happened in his past life and he wondered what its implications would be.

Draco was spared from his thoughts by the arrival of the three Slytherins and they walked together to the Great Hall for breakfast. Draco made his way to the library after a considerable opposition from Theo and Adrian who wanted to spend the day in the grounds flying on their broomsticks. But Draco knew that he needed to get some more information on the dragons and the DragonLords to ease his mind a bit.

Draco wasn't surprised to find the library almost deserted as it was a Sunday morning. Only a handful of N.E.W.T. students were present there, Draco felt a bit bad for them as this was the worst year for them to be sitting for the exams with the Triwizard Tournament happening at Hogwarts. He quickly found the section dealing with the books about dragons. He took a few of them to a table and started going through them.

To his dismay, there was nothing mentioned about the term DragonLord in any of these books. However, they did give him insightful knowledge about all the breeds of dragons and the book called _'From Egg to Inferno, A Dragon Keeper's Guide'_ described the various stages of a dragon's life in great detail.

"Dragons? Since when are you interested in dragons, Malfoy?" Draco looked up startled to find Hermione Granger peering from his shoulders. Harry Potter was also standing beside her with a disinterested look on his face.

"Just a bit of light reading, Granger. Mind if I continue?" Draco sneered. Although his comment made Potter snort loudly, which he suppressed quickly, earning a glare from Granger.

Hermione proceeded to sit at his table; Draco was surprised as she hadn't done that except for their Arithmancy lessons. Potter reluctantly followed her. They sat in silence, each absorbed in their own work; till Viktor Krum made his way into the library, followed by a group of giggling girls. Hermione made an impatient sound, clearly disturbed by the sight. Krum however, proceeded to sit at a further table opposite to Hermione.

Later that night, Draco slipped out of the castle at around midnight to visit the dragon enclosure again.

The dragons let him know when it was safe for him to approach the fence. They also informed him that the Elders' Gathering will take place in a week, formally inviting him on the Elders' behalf; which Draco gracefully accepted.

The little dragon was visibly happy to see him again as he danced around in his hands in the moonlight. Draco looked affectionately at him and said, "You know, I think it's time you got a name. _Moondancer_."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Chester99, thank you for the review. And congratulations on guessing about the voice correctly.**

 **KyuubiNoPuma, I was just pointing out the fact that Moody was taking off the Slytherin points in the classes because he thought they had betrayed his master, Voldemort. The group were just cursing him for that; not that he found out about them being up that night. Thanks for writing the reviews.**

 **Zhi'rev, Irmorena and TinySlippers, thank you for writing the reviews.**


	12. A Gathering of Elders

**Hermione**

Hermione felt that Harry was beginning to come to terms with him being the school Champion. He seemed more worried about the first task now that the shock had worn off; and no matter how much Hermione consoled him, he believed he was going to fail the Task and embarrass himself in front of the whole school. Sirius had answered him back and at least that was something that brought some joy to Harry. Sirius had asked Harry to be alone in the Gryffindor common room at one o'clock in the morning on the 22nd of November. They both had planned together about forcing any stragglers out of the common room on the night in question. If the worst came to the worst, they were going to drop a bag of Dungbombs, but they hoped they wouldn't have to resort to that—Filch would skin them alive.

And then Rita Skeeter, the Daily Prophet reporter who Harry had told her about, had published her article. Instead of reporting on the Triwizard Tournament, she had gone to do a life-story on Harry. Harry had lost his temper when he had read it through and told Hermione that everything written about him was either made-up or overly-exaggerated. Of course, when Hermione herself read it, she found that the reporter hadn't even spared her and called her Harry's girlfriend.

When they were on their way to the Transfiguration class, a group of Slytherins had started quoting the article, hoping to get some reaction from them.

" _Stunningly pretty_? _Her_?" Pansy Parkinson had shrieked coming face to face with her. "What was she judging against—a _chipmunk?"_

Hermione was smart enough to not let her temper rise, but she noticed that Harry had stopped in his tracks, not taking her insult that well. _Boys._

"Ignore it," Hermione said in a dignified voice, holding her head in the air and stalking past the sniggering Slytherin girls as though she couldn't hear them. "Just ignore it, Harry." And she took his hand and guided him to the classroom.

Hermione was most frustrated with the way Ron was acting. She couldn't believe he didn't realize yet that Harry hadn't entered the Tournament voluntarily. Meanwhile, Harry was proving to be just as adamant. He said he would talk to Ron again only if Ron admitted that Harry hadn't put his name in the Goblet of Fire and apologized for calling him a liar. After a few rounds of arguments with each of them, Hermione gave up. She knew they would eventually sort it out between themselves; there was too much of love and friendship between them.

Hermione and Harry now spent most of their time at the library. Mostly because it provided a shelter from the taunts most students were aiming for them these days and also because Harry didn't want to be in close affinity of Ron. And this now meant spending more time in the company of Draco Malfoy, since he had made the library his second home this year.

Hermione had been surprised to find Malfoy sitting in the library on Sunday morning, and was curious enough to peer into the old book he had been reading. The book was about dragons, and so were half a dozen others kept on his table. When she had asked about his interest, he had passed it off as a light reading.

When he had left, Hermione voiced her suspicion about Draco to Harry, but Harry had just brushed it off.

"He told you it was for a _light reading_ , 'mione. _You_ , of all people, should get that. Perhaps, he's just interested in them. Besides, his name _literally_ means a dragon; he's entitled to research about them atleast." Harry had said.

During their next Arithmancy lesson, Draco had acted completely normal; listening to her explanations quietly and solving the practice questions she had set for him without any complaints. But the dark lines under his eyes didn't go unnoticed by Hermione. She wondered what kept him awake at nights, but then brushed the thought off thinking it was none of her business.

Draco was immersed in his Arithmancy problems and Hermione was poring over her class notes when Viktor Krum showed up; and soon after a gang of giggling girls followed. Krum proceeded to sit opposite to her table, and the girls stood by the bookshelves beside their table, trying unsuccessfully to be discreet. Hermione was distracted by the noise they were making.

"He's not even _good-looking_!" she muttered angrily, glaring at Krum's sharp profile. "They only like him because he's famous! They wouldn't look twice at him if he couldn't do that Wonky-Faint thing—"

" _Wronski Feint_ ," said Draco, through gritted teeth; his eyes still on his papers.

Hermione flushed, but she had never really been interested in Quidditch enough to read about the moves the game involved. She had just picked up the term from the World Cup match she had been to, during the holidays.

"Whatever." Hermione muttered, not bothering to hide her contempt.

Draco looked at her curiously for a moment but did not comment any further, going back to his work.

After a few minutes, he inquired, "Granger, would you be kind enough to bring me the numerical manual from the bookshelf. I don't want to waste any of the time you've so _generously_ allotted me for completing this test paper."

Hermione was surprised that Malfoy had asked her so nicely. _Perhaps, I should've just punched him in the very first year_.

Hermione got up from the table and went looking for the manual Malfoy had asked for. She realized she had come a few steps farther from the required shelf, so she took a few steps back without turning around; she bumped her back into something solid.

Hermione was saved from a startled fall by none other than Viktor Krum. She was suddenly reminded of the similar incident when Draco Malfoy had saved her from a nasty fall by the library entrance, catching her by the waist.

"S…sorry. I should've looked behind my back." Hermione managed to stutter this time.

Krum put her back on her legs and offered his hand, "It vas my pleazure. I'm Viktor Krum."

Hermione shook his hands uncertainly, suspicious of the friendly way he was acting towards her.

"I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger." She noticed his confused brow at her name, guessing he had never heard it before. "So, what brings you at the library? I thought you'd be more inclined spending time at the Quidditch ground."

Krum gave a small laugh. "Zust bekause I'm a famous Quidditch pla'er, doesn't mean I kan't have other interests. I love reading books and the Hogwarts library is certainly well-stocked than our own skool's."

Hermione couldn't help but smile. He was actually interested in reading; the fan girls that followed him around weren't exactly his fault. "Well, I hope I'll see you around then, Mr. Krum."

Hermione picked up the book and began walking away. On a second thought, she turned back to Krum who was still looking at her and said, "You can use an invisibility cloak, you know."

Krum gave her a confused look, so she added, "To keep _those_ away." and pointed towards the girls who were now getting impatient trying to locate him. He gave her a warm smile as she turned away once again.

Hermione gave the book to Draco's outstretched hands who didn't even look up from his parchments. She thought she saw a ghost of a smile on the blonde's face.

* * *

 **Draco**

Draco had spent the week in the library researching discreetly about whatever he could find about dragons. He had managed to hide his books from Hermione after she had spotted him with him on the Sunday morning. Between his classes, reading about dragons and hanging out with his new friends; Draco's days flew by pretty fast. At every night, he managed to sneak out of the castle to meet the dragons and the little Moondancer; who were all very delighted to have his company.

Of course, he remembered about Viktor and Hermione's rumored affair from the fourth year and so he couldn't stop himself when she was muttering angrily about him during one of their lessons. He had purposefully sent her to bring a book and as he had expected Krum had followed her soon enough. When Hermione had emerged out of the bookshelfs smiling, he knew everything was on track.

Draco remembered that Hermione's relationship with Krum hadn't lasted long. But given that she had her heart broken by Weasley in the end, he thought it would be better for her to have this chance. _Since when do I care about Granger_ , he thought bitterly.

When the anticipated day of the gathering finally arrived, Draco wrapped his robe around him and went to the enclosure where the dragons were residing. The Mother Horntail informed him that the gathering was to take place further inside the Forest where the presence of twelve large dragons wouldn't be noticed. When asked whether the four of them would also be attending, she replied that it was only for the Elders.

Draco put up a warming spell on his robes and walked further inside the Forbidden Forest. He didn't find a single creature in his long path to the clearing where the Elders awaited him. Perhaps the presence of twelve wild dragons had something to do with that.

It was a magnificent sight; Draco wondered if anyone had seen it they would probably write about it in books.

A gigantic bonfire seemed to glow gloriously right in the middle of a circle formed by twelve massive dragons. He walked to their very center and looked around. From what Draco had learnt about them in the books, along with the larger versions of Hungarian Horntail, Swedish Short Snout, Chinese Fireball and the Common Welsh Green dragons he had already met at the enclosure, there were the rest eight species as well.

 _Antipodean Opaleye_ ; with pearly scales that lined its body, and glittering multi-coloured eyes having no pupils.

 _Hebridean Black_ ; who had dark rough scales, ridges along its back, and a tail tipped with an arrow-shaped spike with brilliant purple eyes.

 _Norwegian Ridgeback_ ; which resembled the Hungarian Horntail, except for the black ridges on its back, the browner texture in its scales.

 _Peruvian Vipertooth_ ; whose scales were smooth and copper-coloured, who also had black ridge-markings and short horns on his head.

 _Romanian Longhorn_ ; who had dark green scales, and two long, glittering golden horns.

 _Ukrainian Ironbelly_ ; metallic grey in colour, with an immense wingspan, long talons and eyes deep red.

 _Catalonian Fireball_ ; who appeared to have a black or possibly scorched, somewhat oddly shaped snout and possessed a row of spikes that descends down its neck, two black horns resided on the top of his head.

 _Portuguese Long-Snout_ ; whose appearance was somewhat similar to that of the Catalonian Fireball, with ridged neck and scaly hide, but with a longer snout and pointier horns.

But, they all had one thing in common, they were all gazing at him.

Draco thought he was being disrespectful by staring at each of them like that, so he cleared his throat and introduced himself, " _Hello, I am Draco. Draco Malfoy_."

The dragons continued to look at him but the Elder Horntail spoke in his deep voice, " _The name becomes you, young Lord. As you may be aware, this Gathering has been called to claim your ascendance. But forgive me for asking; you aren't of age yet, are you?_ "

Draco took a breath. " _Not yet. I am fourteen_." In this time, that is.

Another Elder, possibly the Norwegian Ridgeback spoke, " _But the little dragon still sought your power and claimed you as his DragonRider?"_

Draco looked at him and nodded. " _Yes."_

" _That's impressive. Your magic must already be substantial. There has never been an underage DragonRider. The little dragon will still have to be fully-grown to start your adventures, which might take a couple of years_." Another deep voice, of the Peruvian Vipertooth spoke.

Draco didn't speak aloud but he understood the thing the Vipertooth hadn't. He already had enough magic of a full-grown wizard because he had sustained the magic of his older-self when he had travelled back in time.

" _That just makes our work easier. Since you are the only DragonRider known to us in the present time, it will be fitting for us to crown you the DragonLord without any problems."_ said the Horntail.

Draco had a question this time. He turned to the Elder Horntail, " _Only DragonRider. You mean to say there are others?_ "

The Horntail replied, " _Back in our glorious days, there used to be many DragonRiders, and we Elders had the duty to choose the DragonLord among them. But ever since our distance from the wizardkind and the scattering of the fire-bloodlines; there hasn't been a single DragonRider in the last few centuries_."

Draco wondered how many centuries these Elders had seen, but decided not to ask them that.

The Antipodean Opaleye spoke up in a surprisingly softer voice, " _But he's still a boy. Not to mention, learning at this school. How can he fulfill his duties just yet?"_

The Vipertooth said thoughtfully, " _We can find a way around that. Till the young Lord completes his education and comes of age, we will not burden him with addition responsibilities. The little Moondancer will also be ready till then for his DragonRider. We can use the time to gather up our species and make them aware of the ascendance of our new age. But, it will still be wise to crown him as the DragonLord."_

The rest of the Elders showed their approval by breathing into the bonfire. Draco was glad to be standing at a safe distance from it.

The dragons then touched their chests with their front paws. A bright colored light emerged from each of bodies; silver, red, green, blue, yellow… Each of these light streaks met in the middle just over his head and turned golden. The golden light descended upon him, and a warmth flowed through his body. The feeling subsided after a few moments, but his chest still felt warmer.

The dragons encircling him all bowed their heads and spoke as one, " _My Lord."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Btvs2014, Sorry but I just heard the name of the series, from you. I read the wiki page and found that the "Emergence" seemed similar as well as the some nomenclatures. But, I didn't get the idea from that series. I was just re-reading the first book and noticed how Draco was present while Hagrid's dragon egg hatched. Also, the name Draco literally means dragon; and I wanted something adventurous for Draco and dragons seemed the perfect solution. Thank you for your reviews, keep telling me about your ideas.**

 **Somnus Verus, a Game of Thrones fan, eh? Don't worry, there is no Iron Throne of Seven Kingdoms to fight for here. *wink***

 **Zhi'rev, thank you for your honest comments. I too am looking forward to Draco and Moondancer's relationship. But according to Pottermore, the dragons take two years to be fully grown. So, we'll have to wait for their more splendid adventures till then.**

 **TinySlippers, KyuubiNoPuma, Coldllamastarfish, Irmorena..can't thank you enough for your continued support. I hope you keep enjoying the story.**

 **And a request for the other readers, feel free to drop your reviews. I, personally feel very happy to read them and appreciate you taking out your time to write them. It also helps a lot with improving the storyline. Please, do review.**


	13. The First Task

**Hermione**

It was the next Sunday morning when Hermione was having breakfast with Ginny at the Gryffindor Table; that Harry had rushed into the Great Hall. Judging by his troubled expressions and his impatience to eat breakfast, Hermione knew Harry was hiding something. She didn't have to wait too long because as soon as she had finished her porridge, Harry suggested a walk outside the castle.

While they took a long walk along the Lake, Harry told her all about his last night's adventures. He told her where Hagrid had taken him last night; and that getting past dragons was going to be the First Task of the Tournament. He also told her about his talk with Sirius; and that his godfather had warned him about Karkaroff, the Durmstrang Headmaster being a Death Eater. She was however disappointed to know that Sirius hadn't been able to tell Harry about getting past the dragons.

According to her, the most pressing problem at the moment was finding a way past the dragons, since the Task was just two days away. Yet, Harry was still focused on the Karkaroff problem.

"Let's just try and keep you alive until Tuesday evening," she said desperately, "and then we can worry about Karkaroff."

They walked three times around the lake, trying all the way to think of a simple spell that would subdue a dragon. Nothing whatsoever occurred to them, so they retired to the library instead. Here, Hermione pulled down every book she could find on dragons, and both of them set to work searching through the large pile.

They worked together all afternoon, forgetting all about the lunch. But nothing they found in any of the books about dragons was remotely helpful; for all they knew, it was nearly impossible for a lone wizard to overcome a fully grown dragon. They had even looked through the basic spellbooks because Harry had remembered Sirius saying that something simple would do the trick; too bad he hadn't gotten around to finish his sentence.

And then, she saw Draco Malfoy enter the library.

She nudged Harry by the elbow, and signaled him towards Malfoy. By the look on his face, she knew Harry was conflicted between desperation and pride. Hermione understood too well that it was time for desperate measures.

"Do you really think he's going to help us, 'mione?" Harry hissed.

"We won't know until we ask him, isn't it? Besides, he himself said last week that he was interested in dragons. And judging by the books he was reading, I think we should give it a chance, Harry." Hermione said, using her most authoritative voice.

When Draco had reached their table and settled with his notes, Hermione decided to raise the topic. "Um…Draco?"

Draco looked up at her in surprise and Hermione realized that she had never called him by his first name before. She felt a little guilty about being nice to him just because she wanted something from him; but she knew she had to do it anyway, Harry's life depended on it.

"I saw that you are interested in dragons. And by the amount of books you were referring to last week, I think you might know a great deal about them."

Draco raised his eyebrow suspiciously. "What are you getting at, Granger?"

"Well, we were just speculating how to get past a fully grown dragon, if we hypothetically came across one. How would you do it?" Hermione hoped she sounded innocent enough.

Hermione could see Harry had hid his face in his hands in frustration. Draco, however seemed to be thinking hard about something.

After a good minute or two, Draco answered, "Does it have to do something with the Tournament? You know I'll find out eventually."

"It is." Hermione admitted, while Harry kept his head in his hands.

"I'll tell you. But Potter, _there's a price_." He added, his attention shifting towards Harry.

Harry now raised his head to look at Draco. He was visibly surprised, just like Hermione that Draco had agreed to help them, but was wary of what might be the Slytherin's price. Yet, he spoke confidently, "Malfoy, I wouldn't have expected anything less from a Slytherin. What is your price?"

But Draco seemed to take that as a compliment. "I'm glad we understand each other, Potter. All I want is a promise from you that you will not share this information or rather anything related to this Tournament to anyone other than me, Granger or Ronald Weasley. No professors, no Champions, no other person. Is that acceptable?"

Hermione looked from Draco to Harry. He too seemed to be thinking about this unexpected price of the Slytherin. His request seemed reasonable enough, and he had also included Ron who was the only other person Harry would've wanted to share it with, of course when they started talking to each other again. The teachers wouldn't be expected to provide any help and she could see no reason why Harry needed to discuss the Tasks with the other Champions. She glanced at Harry who was waiting for her verdict, and she nodded at him.

"I agree with most of your terms, Malfoy. But now that you've pointed out, I really think I should tell Cedric about the first task. By my estimation, Krum and Fleur already know; it would be unfair if Cedric was the only one who didn't."

Hermione knew Harry was honorable enough to think that but she also knew that this would have him at disadvantage. So, she spoke up. "Harry, you're forgetting that he's a seventh year. If Draco here knows the solution, probably he will too. No offence to you, Malfoy."

Hermione did notice Draco's smirk when she called him by his first name again. _This Slytherin was much too observant!_

"C'mon, Potter! You are getting a very good deal here. That's my condition: You are not going to tell Diggory anything. Do you agree?"

"You two are not giving me any choice, are you? Fine, I won't say a word. Now would you please care to explain your solution? The task is less than forty-eight hours away."

Draco seemed satisfied by Harry's answer. And proceeded to tell them his solution. Hermione could tell he was enjoying himself; knowing he knew something Harry and herself had no idea about.

"Well, the dragonkeepers use Stunning spells to keep the dragons in check. But the problem with that is, one spell isn't enough to bring it down and besides, we haven't been taught about it yet. The best option is the Conjunctivitis Curse; which you can use on its eyes. But there's no telling which way the dragon will go if it goes blind. The last option however, I think you'll find interesting…"

* * *

 **Draco**

The week after the Gathering had passed like a breeze for Draco. The Elders had proclaimed him the DragonLord and then left while instructing him to complete his magical education with all his sincerity since it was going to help him perform his duties in the future.

When he had showered the next morning, he found a tattoo on his chest, unmistakably of a dragon. He vaguely recalled the warm sensation at the ceremony and concluded it was part of his title as DragonLord. He was also feeling healthier and when he had practiced spells in his classes, his magic had also improved a great deal.

Draco had been visiting Moondancer and the other dragons at night. He was pleased to see that the little dragon was growing very quickly. Even after losing some sleep at night, Draco didn't feel tired or drowsy in the day anymore. _There were some perks of being the DragonLord afterall!_

The week had passed, between the classes and the friends he had now made. Draco was happier about his new-found friendships more than the fact that he had now become the DragonLord. He was pretty sure the old Draco would've preferred the latter very much. However, Draco was determined that he would do his best at every opportunity he got, _this time._

After a day of Quidditch and hanging around with Blaise, Adrian and Theo, Draco had managed to make his way to the library in the evening; mostly because they were too tired to stop him. Of course, when he reached the library, another surprise was waiting for him.

Hermione Granger had asked him about getting past the dragon. The first task was supposed to be in two days and evidently Harry had found out about the nature of the task.

Draco was faced with a dilemma. Here was something that had not happened in the past timeline. _Heck, he hadn't even been a DragonLord in the past timeline_. The excuse about not changing the past wasn't helping here. He _could_ refuse to help; but Hermione made a point to remind him that she had seen him with those books about dragons a week ago. She had been tutoring him with Arithmancy and he knew that she deserved his help in return. Besides, Harry would eventually find out from the Death Eater; _better be from him than that murderer_.

There was also this opportunity to save a life. If Harry doesn't tell Cedric about the First Task, then he would probably not make it to the Cup in the Final Task. Somehow, Draco felt that it was the right thing to do.

And so he gave Harry a choice: the solution, for not telling Cedric. He hadn't expected Hermione to be on his side, but he knew that she was clever enough to understand that sometimes you have to be unfair to win. When Harry had finally agreed, he explained in detail what he had to do.

There was still one more thing to do. Draco skimmed his memories about how the other Champions had dealt with the dragons. The night before the Task, he sneaked into the dragons' enclosure as usual and alerted them about the other Champions. However, he told the Horntail to take it easy on the smallest Champion and let him have the golden egg as easily as possible; not too conspicuously that is. Draco had to ensure that it was Harry who won the Tournament; anyone else reaching the Cup would most likely be dead.

The next afternoon, the atmosphere in the school was one of great tension and excitement. Draco was also eagerly awaiting the Task take place and how different it was going to be than the last time he had seen it; his memory of the task had now become fuzzy.

First to be brought to the enclosure was Cedric Diggory. But he looked almost petrified at the sight of the Swedish Short Snout. After thinking for a long time, he transfigured a stone into a dog. Cedric was hoping the dragon would go for the dog, but she didn't even budge from her place. Whenever Cedric even tried to come near her, she attacked him with her fiery breath. Finally, Cedric had been burnt enough for the judges to call it done.

Next came Fleur, who used her Veela charm on the Welsh Green. It took her almost an hour, trying to get the dragon to sleep. When Fleur got close, the dragon snored loudly, and her uniform caught on fire. She managed to put it out with a bit of water from her wand.

After Fleur, came Krum. He tried to use the Conjunctivitis Curse on the Chinese Fireball, but the dragon managed to get her eyes out of his shots every time. When he finally got it right, mostly owing to his seeker reflexes and after a few burns; the dragon went trampling around in agony and squashed half the real eggs. The truth was the eggs weren't real at all, Draco had replaced them with fake ones only last night. He was now glad he had thought of that.

Last was Harry Potter's turn. He managed to summon his Firebolt to the enclosure; Draco had enough confidence in Hermione's teaching abilities. The Horntail didn't give him much trouble as Draco had asked her, always breathing fire when he was out of the way. After ten minutes, Harry was clutching the golden egg in his hands; the clear winner of the Task.

Draco looked around him, the entire crowd was clapping and shouting for Harry now. The Hogwarts students, forgetting all about their houses, were making the most noise; at least they now had a Champion whom they could pin their hopes on. Draco was happy to see that even the Slytherins had joined in on the cheering after witnessing the horrible performance by Diggory. Draco too clapped along with Blaise, Adrian and Theo. Theo had put his arm around his shoulder and exclaimed, "You were right, Draco. Potter has certainly made sure our school has the strongest claim to the Cup."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Don't worry, guys. Hermione and Draco will eventually fall for each other! Hopefully, Draco will be getting a letter from home soon. Also, a big thank you to the reviewers, keep writing them. :)**


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